A Speedster's Choice
by depressedchildren
Summary: One night in 1984 could have gone a number of ways with far reaching consequences. While time sets most things, the ancestors of time travelers are the ones with true freewill. Poor Eobard Thawne, his ancestors are especially bent on free-will and heroics; if only they'd stop f***ing with the timeline he knew. While Eobard waits for his opportunity, the past must still play out.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Arrow_ or _Flash._ They are property of Detective Comics and the CW. I gain no profit by writing this fictional story.

 **Summary:** One night in 1984 could have gone a number of ways with far reaching consequences. While time sets most things, the ancestors of time travelers are the ones with true freewill. Poor Eobard Thawne, his ancestors are especially bent on free-will and heroics; if only they'd stop fucking with the timeline _he_ knew. Eobard will just have to wait for a chance to make sure _his_ timeline happens, no matter how free-willed his ancestors were.

 **A/N:** So I foolishly did a culminating project on _Arrow,_ and had to re-watch the series more times than I normally would ever want to. This got my creative gears working because I needed some fun outlet while analyzing it until my brain was mush. The result was originally a Female Oliver x Bruce Wayne story, but I scrapped that because Batman doesn't exist on this Earth. I like my alternative, and thanks to third season _Flash,_ there are so many alternatives that i could play with in one-shots. Anyways, I hoe you enjoy the prologue ~ much love, depressedchildren

* * *

 **Prologue:** Thawne Choices

* * *

 _Starling City 1984—Eobard's timeline_

Moira Dearden Queen smiled over at her husband as he concluded business with the Eversmiths. He had that twinkle in his eyes that said the gala had been time and money well spent, and now Robert was looking forward to some alone time with her. She smiled and lifted one arm up to welcome Robert into an embrace. The man wrapped an arm around her waist and bent down to kiss her. She tilted her head up to meet the kiss.

Moira sighed as she set her head against Robert's shoulder. She stared out at the assembled guests. People from Gotham to Keystone were present for the gala this year, and it just showed how influential the Queen name was at a national level. Robert swayed with Moira for a moment as they basked in their accomplishments. However, Moira frowned as she mentally ran over the guest lists.

Moira pulled back and looked up at her husband. He was still smiling a bit but eventually understood her expression and sobered. "Yes Moira?" he asked.

"Are you and Mr. Thawne still having a spat?" she questioned. Robert's expression immediately closed off and he looked elsewhere as he raised his glass up to his lips. Moira pursed her lips in displeasure. "Robert," she threatened, but he continued to look elsewhere.

Moira shook her head and took a sip of her champagne. He would tell her when he was ready or he'd keep silent and eventually they would both let the matter lie forgotten. She already had a pattern established with Robert, and they hadn't even been married long.

Moira moved away from her stubborn husband and sought someone out to socialize with. She caught Rebecca Merlyn smiling over at her; Moira put on her practiced smile and walked over to the brunette. The two kissed cheeks and hugged before they settled into an easy conversation. Robert meandered back over to her and set his hand on the small of Moira's back.

"Malcolm and I are planning to have a child," Rebecca confided, and Moira raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"Congratulations then!" she exclaimed. However, Moira felt a moment of jealousy for the other woman. Robert wasn't ready for children yet, apparently. Malcolm chimed in then as he set his hand on Rebecca's back.

"Now, let's not jinx anything, Rebecca," he said. Malcolm gave an easy laugh, and Moira's jealousy settled back down.

Rebecca gave a brief conceding look before her eyes flashed in excitement and she leaned in toward Moira. "I heard Mrs. Thawne went into labor this morning," she gossiped.

"She what?" Robert asked in shock. Rebecca straightened and smiled at Robert.

"Abagail Thawne went into labor this morning. The poor dear is already sixteen hours in," Rebecca lamented sympathetically. Rebecca then shook her head and took a sip of her champagne. "I hope my labor won't last that long."

"I imagine she must be having complications," Malcolm added, and Rebecca nodded her head in agreement. Robert's hand curled slightly around Moira's waist at the statement, and Moira shifted at the sudden tension.

"Poor dear," Moira commented as she glanced over at her husband out of the corner of her eye. His expression was closed off again.

"Complications…" Robert repeated and nodded his head almost numbly.

"Robert? Are you all right?" Malcolm began to ask as he looked at his suddenly stoic friend.

Robert blinked and gave his winning smile before excusing himself. Moira watched her husband leave with her brow furrowed. Why was he acting so oddly about the Thawnes? They had been family friends up until a few months ago. Moira absentmindedly excused herself and followed after her husband.

Why was he heading toward the exit?! Moira picked up her pace without looking like she was running. "Robert!" she hissed; he ignored her. "Robert!" she said more firmly as she began to catch up with him. He turned toward her and raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?" she questioned sharply. "Why are you leaving—you're the host."

Robert closed his eyes and ran a hand over his face. They were alone now in the foyer, but he gestured her to come closer. "Moira…I should have told you of my…transgression sooner," he began. Transgression? A sinking feeling began to settle in her stomach. No…no…God please no! She knew Robert had a reputation but please no! He wouldn't…wouldn't cheat on _her._

"Robert?" her voice was shaking.

Robert closed his eyes in pain and said, "I had an affair with Abagail, and—"

"No!" she gasped; her voice cracked. Moira took a step back but her heel slid from under her and she began to twist her ankle. Robert quickly caught her arms and steadied her but she slapped his hands away from her and moved away.

"That baby's mine, Moira, and if there are complications…" Robert trailed off. Moira was shaking her head; her whole world felt like it was crashing down around her. What did their vows mean? What did _any_ of this mean?!

Moira hurried to the stairs and noticed Robert made no additional moves to stop or comfort her. Moira nearly tripped up the stairs, but eventually made it and covered her hand with her mouth as she leaned against the wall. Oh God! Her husband was having a baby, a baby _she_ wasn't carrying. He sullied their marriage, their vows… Was this what her life was going to be like now? Her husband leaving her for other women?

Moira leaned heavily against a wall and tried to keep the tears back. She felt so betrayed, but she should have known better, shouldn't she have? Would she lose her husband? Despite Robert's faults, she _did_ love him, but she didn't want to share him—she shouldn't _have_ to share him. What was she going to do? She had guests to reassure now that their host had left, but she didn't think she could put on her usual smile.

Moira perked up when she heard a car start outside. She moved to the nearest window and saw Robert's car zooming down the driveway. She leaned in toward the cool window pane and closed her eyes. Would she always come second to that woman and their child? How would she be able to keep Robert with her? It was clear their vows meant little.

"I'm surprised to see the host up here," someone commented from behind her. Moira turned around at the sudden voice, and she immediately began to compose herself. She didn't recognize the blonde man in front of her. He had a dimple on his chin and a broad jaw.

"Can I help you?" she asked. Her voice was steadier than she felt.

He smirked and took a casual sip of his champagne. "No Mrs. Queen," he began, "I am here to help _you_." He moved closer to the window and stared at the retreating headlights from Robert's car as it turned onto the country road outside the manor.

"Oh?" Moira questioned skeptically, and the man flashed another smile at her.

"Yes. You see," he paused to inhale as he shifted his weight forward, "I understand your husband is unfaithful and is off to see a child he's had with another woman." Moira straightened up more and gave the man a cold stare.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Moira defended herself; her tone was even and neutral. The man gave a little laugh.

"You're good at lying Mrs. Queen, but really…" he trailed off in chastisement as he gave her an almost disappointed look. He then sighed and set his empty glass down on a lamp table. "This night can go a number of ways, but you really ought to think about what is best for you and your family."

"What do you care about this? Are you a reporter?" Moira asked brusquely. The man laughed at the suggestion.

"No, no, nothing so crude," he reassured her. He shoved his hands in his pockets casually before continuing. "I have a vested interest in the Thawne family, and I would rather _not_ see them fall apart because of a reckless man." Moira narrowed her gaze at the man, but he just remained where he was at complete ease.

He took her silence as cue to continue speaking, "Now, I suppose you could kick your husband to the metaphorical dog house for a few months, but we both _know_ you won't divorce him." Moira would deny flinching, but the man's smirk said he saw the expression. "So eventually you will accept him back into your bed and try to have a child so he stays with _you_ and not Thawne." The man pulled one hand out of his pocket and began to casually wave it around as he walked back and forth in front of her. " _But_ ," the blonde began, "he will have already formed a _bond_ with the new baby and it will be harder to keep him to yourself."

"So you are suggesting I use my child as some sort of blackmail?" Moira asked stiffly. Her stomach fell, and she felt sick for a moment.

"Well, yes," the man admitted. He grinned, and Moira had to look away. "Oh come on!" he practically groaned. "You've thought about it Mrs. Queen. How better to keep that wandering man with you but through a child?" he suggested almost teasingly, seductively.

Moira closed her eyes and her hands clenched into fists at her sides. She wanted this man to go away.

"Now, I can tell you the Thawnes will keep this indiscretion quiet, so quiet their other children won't know, but Robert will still be in that baby's life unless…" the man trailed off, and she knew what he was suggesting.

"So I trap my husband to me through my child or children?" Moira asked. The words tasted bitter on her tongue and she felt sick to her stomach, but a part of her also felt freed. She looked over at the odd blonde, and he gave her another smile.

"Exactly," the man agreed. "Now I suggest you seduce that man the moment he comes home." He paused and smirked. "Make Robert Queen remember whose husband he is."

Moira nodded slowly, and the man flashed her a self-satisfied smile before leaving the hallway.

"Wait. What is your name?" she asked.

The man slowed his walk and looked over his shoulder at Moira. "Eobard," he replied. Moira frowned and narrowed her gaze as the man started to head down the stairs. There had been no Eobard on the guest list.

…

May tenth of 1985, Moira Dearden Queen brought a new life into the world. She stared down at her baby boy, her insurance to keep Robert. But this baby was _more_ than that. This baby was a chance for her marriage to come back together; it was a chance for them to be a _family_. Her little Oliver was going to fix their family and unite them again. Oliver Jonas Queen, _her_ precious baby boy. She loved him more with each passing moment. This was her baby.

 _Starling City 1984—untampered timeline_

Moira watched her husband's car lights speed down the county road. Her fingers curled into fists and she turned on her heel. He was going to make a fool of her and their marriage, and it made this heat build in her chest. She wanted to scream but she had guests; she had to keep up appearances while he left her for another woman—for a child _they_ had. Damn him! Damn him and his infidelity. She was supposed to be his wife; she was supposed to be different!

Her arms began shaking in anger and she knew she could not go back to the ballroom. So she changed directions and began to head toward their bedroom. She slammed the door closed behind her and leaned back against it.

This was her life with Robert. The photos from their wedding and photos of their respective families… Then there were the sheets on their bed…the sight of them made her sick, sicker than even the wedding photo made her feel. She stormed over to the bed and ripped the sheets off the mattress. Screaming as her movements were hindered by the corners of the mattress snagging the bottom sheet.

Damn it! She whirled around as she gave up, but then she saw one of Robert's suits laying out on a chair. Was this a suit he wore with _her?_ Moira grabbed it and threw it on the ground with the sheets before screaming again.

For a moment she stood there, her chest heaving and her face feeling hot. As she caught her breath, the energy left her and she fell down to the ground and sat there numb and in silence for a long moment. What was she doing? Was this what her life had come to?

She didn't know how long it had been, but her thoughts were swirling as she tried to think about what to do. Did she leave Robert? But she had already invested so much into their relationship and it would only confirm what her mother had said about Robert. Could they salvage their marriage? Did she even want to salvage it? She was still so angry yet lost too.

Moira closed her eyes and continued to sit there. The ticking of the clock reached her ears after a moment and she realized too much time had passed since the hosts had left the party. She had better go back down there, but she felt so numb. Still, Moira pulled herself back to her feet. She then moved over to the mirror and looked at her appearance. She had not been crying, so her make-up was still fine. Her dress was a bit disheveled and her hair looked the same. She straightened out what she could and began to head out the room and back to the guests.

The rest of the night she gave practiced smiles and came up with an excuse for Robert's absence. The ease with which she lied made her feel sick and yet numb at the same time. When she was finally alone that night, she sat at the kitchen counter with a glass of wine and an uncorked bottle next to it. She stared a head of her and occasionally took sips until she had to refill the glass—then she repeated the process. All the while, she fiddled with her wedding ring as she stared unseeing at the far wall. So many thoughts were racing through her mind, and yet none could stick. All she had left was a feeling: a hopeless, helpless feeling.

She didn't hear when Robert came in, but the bottle was nearly empty when he entered the kitchen. He had a black eye and he was reaching for the freezer door. Moira looked over at the kitchen clock dazedly—five A.M. Robert leaned against the opposite counter as he set a bag of peas against his eye.

"Moira…" he began but she just picked up her glass and finished the wine in it.

She then stood up and stumbled for a moment. Robert was already hurrying to her side but she held up her hand. "I don't want your help right now Robert," she snapped. Her words were clumsy on her tongue.

"Let me help you to bed," he tried to reason with her as he set the peas on the counter. Moira shook her head.

"I don't _want_ to be in that bed with you ever again," she announced before shoving his hands away from her. She then stumbled a bit away from him. "You made a fool of me and our marriage Robert!" Her voice was rising.

"Don't touch me!" she shouted as he tried to reach out to her again.

"Moira," he began. His expression was almost pitiful but she just hurried past him. "Moira!"

"Don't talk to me Robert." Her voice was beginning to waver. She hurried out of the kitchen and stumbled through the manor to the guest wing.

"Moira…" Robert kept following her, like he was lost or something.

Moira eventually stumbled into the door of one of the guest rooms, and began to turn the doorknob. "Moira, we don't need to separate like this. Let's be reasona—"

"Be reasonable?!" Moira countered. "You have a _child_ —child that isn't _mine!_ Robert, how could you do this to us?!"

He stared at her for a long moment, but she just shook her head. "I don't want to be around you right now Robert," she stated. Her voice as shaking and she could feel the tears starting to build up.

Moira hurried into the guest room and slammed the door shut behind her before locking it. She then fell to her knees and began to cry forward into the floor. She had lied to all of their friends and work associates. Robert had made a liar of her and had made a lie of their marriage. She couldn't forgive him, she couldn't, but she couldn't leave him either. So instead, she cried and screamed and cursed.

…

Over the next month, Moira avoided Robert, but _he_ spent more time at home. He gave her flowers and chocolates that she threw out. He tried to talk to her but she would give him a blank look and find some excuse to be away from him. It hurt that he thought he could fix their marriage with gifts and flowers. She felt insulted because where were his promises to never betray her again? Or did he refrain because he knew they would be hollow promises?

When the help was asleep and she had pushed Robert away for the nth time, she'd break down and begin weeping. Why? She didn't know. Perhaps because her marriage felt over even though she would still play her part as his wife when they had company. She hated what she had become; she hated what Robert had made of her. But at the same time she didn't want to leave and part of her wanted to make things work with Robert, but she was just _too_ angry. However, her anger was exhausting.

It had been a full month since Robert admitted to his infidelity and bastard child. Moira had gone to bed early, but now lay in bed staring off to the side. She didn't want her marriage to end. She didn't want to give up on Robert. She didn't want to be alone. Moira felt the tears gathering at the corners of her eyes and then slide down onto her pillow as she stared at the far wall. She was so tired and angry and frustrated, but she loved Robert despite everything. It was all muddled and it hurt her in ways she didn't know she _could_ hurt.

Moira was laying on her side when the door opened. She didn't flinch or move. In her peripherals, she could see it was Robert. He hesitantly entered the room; he was fiddling with some papers. Moira didn't have the energy to sit up properly, so she just continued staring at the far wall.

"Moira," Robert began as if testing the waters. Moira didn't respond and just blinked. He moved closer to the bed and faltered in his steps. He sighed and then moved the rest of the way until he was sitting by her on the bed.

"I wish we could move past this. I-I _want_ us to move past this, but if you can't forgive me and—" he gave a self-depreciating laugh "—Lord knows I wouldn't deserve it anyways, but…" he trailed off and sighed.

The papers moved into her line of sight as Robert held them out to her. "If you want to divorce, I understand," he whispered. His voice cracked. "I'll make sure the assets are split generously—"

"I don't want your money Robert," Moira snapped. Her voice was small. "I've only ever wanted your love, your loyalty—" Her voice cracked on the last word and the tears began to gather again.

"Oh Moira…" he murmured. She heard movement and then Robert was kneeling in front of her. "I _do_ love you. I-I don't know what I was doing with Abagail. I-I…" There was a shine to his eyes and a quivering to his voice—he was close to crying… There was something vindicating in seeing him close to her own condition. "I love you so much Moira. I never meant to hurt you like this."

"But you did Robert," she shot back. Moira's voice was still cracking and her throat felt so tight. The divorce papers were forgotten now on the floor as Robert reached for her hands and held them.

"I never want to hurt you again Moira. I never will. I promise," he stated. He then kissed her fingers, and Moira closed her eyes. Her anger was so exhausting and she still loved Robert so much. "I want to have a family with _you_ ," he murmured. "I want to spoil you and our kids. I want to come home to see you smiling; I want my wife and partner back."

Moira's stomach tightened and a fluttering began. This was _her_ Robert. The Robert she fell in love with. "Oh Robert…" she whispered as she raised herself up onto one arm and pulled her other hand out of his hold so she could touch his check. "I love you Robert. I want a family with you too."

He leaned in and kissed Moira; she let him. Soon, she was falling onto the bed with him.

…

May twenty-ninth of 1985, Moira Dearden Queen brought a new life into the world. She stared down at her baby girl with Robert over her shoulder. "She's so beautiful," he whispered, which was probably a lie. Their little girl was still covered in birthing fluids and looked a bit like an alien, but that was expected of a premature baby. The doctors took the baby back for tests but Moira watched them take her daughter away with an expression of longing.

"That's our baby, Robert," she stated. He squeezed her shoulder.

"I know," he murmured before he leaned down and kissed her sweaty temple. "You did amazing—she's perfect."

She was, their baby was perfect. This baby was a chance for their marriage to come back together; it was a chance for them to be a _family_. Olivia Joan Queen, _their_ precious baby girl. Moira could never imagine loving something more than she did her child, and Robert's expression said he felt the same. Moira leaned back exhausted and kissed the bottom of Robert's chin. He smiled as he turned his head to look down at her. He then pressed a kiss back to her lips, and Moira felt like their relationship was finally back together.

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 **TBC**

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 **A/N:**

So this fic will follow the "untampered" timeline. For those wondering how Eobard fits into things well…spoilers. I have a logical reason to explain why he's there, and those who watched _Legends of Tomorrow_ second season and _Flash_ third season will probably have a good guess why. Anyways, I will not rehash scenes unless there are different interactions—like really different. The focus of this story is more romance, friendship, and family than adventure or drama. This is also in cross-over because, while it will follow _Arrow_ for a time, the fic will also follow _Flash_ quite a bit ( maybe not as much as _Arrow_ , but...). I will do my best to update in a month, but we'll see ~ with love, depressedchildren


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Arrow_ or _Flash._ They are property of Detective Comics and the CW. I gain no profit by writing this fictional story.

 **Summary:** One night in 1984 could have gone a number of ways with far reaching consequences. While time sets most things, the ancestors of time travelers are the ones with true freewill. Poor Eobard Thawne, his ancestors are especially bent on free-will and heroics; if only they'd stop fucking with the timeline _he_ knew. Eobard will just have to wait for a chance to make sure _his_ timeline happens, no matter how free-willed his ancestors were.

 **A/N:** Here is the second chapter. Most chapters will follow this pattern of flashback and present day story telling (kind of like how _Arrow_ structures things). Hope you enjoy ~ with love, depressedchildren

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 **Chapter 1:** Drunken Nights

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 **2007**

Robert Queen watched his eldest daughter skip down the stairs while talking to her best friend, Tommy on the phone. "I am so excited for the frat tour Tommy. So it's Keystone first, Ivy Coast, then Central City, right?" There was a pause as she moved through the foyer. "Man, move-in week is the _best!"_

Robert sighed and looked at his daughter worriedly. Keystone. That was where the Thawnes lived, and Eddie was still going to school there. What if they met at a party and—Robert shuttered at the thought. No, it was best to keep _that_ from happening. Perhaps he could tell Olivia about Eddie? No…that wouldn't work. Moira had been adamant about keeping that past indiscretion secret. However, part of Robert felt his daughter had a right to know she had a half-brother out there, but then they would need to tell Thea about Tommy and that was just more drama than either cared to admit to.

Robert sighed and looked over at his wife in the sitting area. No, Moira never wanted the children to know about her affair with Malcolm, or his affair with Abagail or Isabel or any of the other women. Robert sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets as he waited for Olivia to finish talking with Tommy. At least he only had one illegitimate child, or he might give himself more grey hair worrying about his daughters sleeping with a sibling by accident.

Shaking that thought away, he addressed his eldest, "Olivia." She had finally put her phone into her pocket. The girl perked up and looked over at him.

"Yeah Dad?"

"You'll be safe on your road trip, right? Don't take any drinks you haven't poured yourself—"

"I know Dad," she interrupted. She was rolling her eyes at his lecture. Robert laughed a little. He supposed she did know the lectures well by this point; however, he quickly sobered.

"Listen," he began as he shoved his hands in his pockets, "I heard you're going to Keystone, was it?"

"Yep, that's our first stop," she replied slightly distracted—Tommy had likely texted her something seeing as she had her phone out again.

Robert grimaced, and Olivia raised an eyebrow at that. "Look Olivia…" he trailed off. How did he phrase this? "The Thawnes live there."

"Okay…?" she responded slowly. Of course she would be confused, and he didn't blame her.

"We don't get along with them," Robert stated. "It would be best you avoided Keystone and any Thawnes, okay?" She gave him a skeptical look. He deserved that reaction.

"Yeah, I'll avoid any Thawnes I meet," Olivia replied flippantly. She rolled her eyes now, and Robert's anger got the best of him.

"This is not a joke, Olivia!" Robert snapped and immediately regretted raising his voice because Olivia flinched away from him. Damn it.

Robert sighed and rubbed his face. "I don't want you going to Keystone and partying, okay Olivia? I just—" _worry you'll end up sleeping with your brother_. God damn it. He sighed again. "I don't want any Thawnes to hurt you and I don't put it past them to try," he lied.

Olivia frowned but slowly nodded her head. "Okay, I'll tell Tommy the change of plans." She started to pull out her phone again, but she looked back up at Robert with a serious expression on her face. "We won't go to Keystone, Dad, I promise," she said. Robert closed his eyes and nodded slowly.

Robert could never keep his daughter from the party scene, no matter how much he sometimes wanted to keep her locked in her room. She was a free-spirit like him, and she would chaff if anyone tried to put limits on her. No, it was best to let Olivia do what she needed to.

Robert's attention was pulled as he heard feet thundering down the stairs and an excited scream break the relative silence of the hallway. Robert's smile grew. Thea… The young brunette raced past him, and Robert gave chase.

He caught up with the twelve-year-old and grabbed her from behind before lifting Thea up and spinning her around. She gave a cry before protesting and demanding he put her down. Chuckling, Robert complied but not before grabbing her in a hug and peppering her cheek with kisses. He loved his baby girl so much, even if she wasn't his biological daughter. God, he loved Thea and Olivia like crazy.

 **2008**

Barry Allen stared at his drink. It was officially one year since…and it still fucking hurt. He knocked the beer back and set the empty can down before picking up another and opening it. He sighed and looked over at his friends who glanced back at him now that he was on his fourth can. God, if Joe could see Barry, he'd probably lecture him about drinking underage, but Barry really did not care. Maybe part of his not caring was also because he was at a friend's apartment. Apparently the guy's older brother had bought him beer and now they needed to finish the case up before Parent's Weekend. Why the guy's parents still wanted to come when he wasn't a freshman baffled all of them.

Barry was momentarily distracted from his thoughts by his friends yelling loudly. He glanced over at them, his vision already blurry and his thinking slowing down. Based on the wild arm flailing, Barry deduced one of them messed up or died in the game they kept trying to get him to play; he just wasn't feeling it tonight.

Barry may have agreed to hangout, but it was more so he could drink. This probably wasn't healthy, he knew that, but autumn just always sucked. It reminded him of everyone he lost: his mother, his father, and the girl—no _woman—_ who made him forget about Iris for even just a little bit. He closed his eyes and sank deeper into the couch. He was getting tired…

…

 _Barry fidgeted with his plaid button-up shirt as bodies swarmed around him while jumping and writhing to the music. It was almost claustrophobic, and the noise! Everyone was yelling while the music's bass literally reverberated in his chest. It was hot in the room and lit up with black-lights. He could smell pot coming from a closed off side room, and he was pretty sure he just saw someone throw up. Why was he here again?_

 _Oh yeah, move-in weekend and the local frat was throwing a huge party. Since freshmen moved in the week before term started—part of some freshman integration program—most of the other guys on his floor had gone, and he reluctantly went with them. Okay, maybe he wasn't reluctant; he'd always wondered what "house parties" were like. Plus, he was lonely. He missed Joe and Iris, especially now that it was Fall and he was living away from home._

 _Someone bumped into him and the contents of their red Solo cup splashed onto him. He cringed but kept moving through the sea of people. He finally made his way to the drink area and someone just handed him a cup. He wasn't sure what was in it, but he thought the person told him there was rum in it? He smelled the cup but really only smelled pineapple juice. Barry shrugged and began to drink._

 _The drink wasn't abrasive or anything, but his stomach kind of warmed from it. He leaned against a wall and watched as people danced in the living room. There was a circle forming around two couples. One featured a dark haired white guy in an expensive looking dress shirt dancing with an Asian-American girl in short-shorts and a halter top. The other couple featured an African-American guy in a shirt showing the school logo while he danced with some blonde white girl in a gold sequenced halter dress._

 _Barry didn't get why these couples deserved a crowd, but as he got further into his drink, he realized they were having, like, a dance competition. A dirty dance competition. Barry blushed as the blonde dropped down to the floor facing her partner as she raked her hands down the guy's sides until she tugged at his jeans' waistline. Then she shimmied her way back up before turning around and grinding into the guy. Not to be showed up, the other girl did a hair flip as she turned her back to her partner and wrapped an arm around the guy's head before shimmying down his body with her hands trailing over his chest._

 _Barry quickly took another sip of his drink while looking away, only to realize he was out. Well…another drink wouldn't hurt, right? He went back over to the designated bar area and accepted the next drink. This one_ did _burn. He coughed slightly but eventually made his way back to the dance circle. The blonde girl was making out with her partner while they continued to move to the music, both slotted together. Wow… crazy. Barry turned away from the dancing group and moved further into the house. He found the kitchen where there were boxes of frozen pizza opened with mostly eaten (cooked) pizzas on top. There were also some people making out on a counter. He was going to need to get drunker before he started enjoying this night._

 _And get drunker he did get. Barry was stumbling by the time he made it back to the dance floor area. Before he knew what was happening, the white girl with the halter dress was grabbing him as he tried to make his way through the area. Surprised, Barry stumbled into her and set his hands on her hips. She gave little excited cry and wrapped her arms around his neck before slotting her body into his. Barry blushed but found himself moving with her and wow…this was kind of fun and…exciting._

 _Barry didn't know when they started kissing but then they were and then he was being pulled into the kitchen by the girl. The only explanation he got was: "I'm thirsty!" He was thirsty too. Another drink would help—Barry was convinced of that. The girl stumbled into a counter and he followed suit. There were freshly made drinks and they both grabbed them. These were pineapple-y ones again._

 _"This is soo good!" Barry yelled back to the girl, though his tongue was heavy and the words didn't come out right. The girl laughed a little._

 _She moved forward, her chest collided with his arm, which he had propped against the counter to help him keep upright. "My name's Ollie!" she yelled, and Barry nodded his head._

 _"Barry!" he returned, and they gave each other broad smiles._

 _"Hey, how old are you? Are you like a minor?!" she asked as she leaned a little more heavily into him before taking a sip of her drink._

 _"What?! No, I'm eighteen!" He then set his cup down and fumbled for his wallet. "S-see!" he slurred as he pulled out his ID._

 _Ollie held it up to a light and narrowed her gaze as she stared at it. "It looks real," she said after a moment before laughing. "But then, what idiot would get a fake ID under twenty-one!" Barry got the gist of what she was saying and he took his ID back. They both laughed a little, and Barry looked for his cup before picking it back up._

 _"Hey-hey," Barry began before taking a sip, "D'you know about…umm…the-the—" there were two of Ollie but they both kept smiling at him "—Ky-Kyoto University biology program. They're like…umm…doing these really cool advances in biology."_

 _"Yeah?!" He then proceeded to ramble about STEM Cell research and the girl just kept laughing every now and then, but Barry didn't mind because she was really pretty, and her chest was still touching his arm. She felt nice._

 _Ollie eventually cut him off, "You're sooo cute!" She brought up her freehand and brushed at some of his hair._

 _"I'm not cute!" he protested, and she just laughed more._

 _"Are too!" she shot back before stepping closer to him until their breath was mingling. "You're a virgin right? You're just so cute!"_

 _Barry could only stutter and try to defend himself, only to forget what he was saying when she was kissing him again._

 _…_

"Hey Barry? Barry," someone coaxed as they tried to wake him. Barry opened one eye blearily. "Let's get you back to your apartment, yeah?" It was his friend, and Barry worked to get to his feet. He stumbled a few times and then someone was under his arm and helping him walk.

"I'm fine," he protested a little groggily, and his friend stared at Barry skeptically. Barry sighed and let his friend take him home. He imagined his hangover was going to suck, though he doubted it would beat the one he had after his first house party—err, or was it called a frat party?

…

 _"Housekeeping!" Oh God, who was pounding on the door and yelling. His head spun and-and—he was going to throw up. Oh shit, where's the trashcan? He_ _blearily looked around and saw that one was under that desk. He crawled across the bed before stumbling over and falling to his knees in front of the trash can. He began retching, but his retching wasn't the only retching in the room._

 _Wait? Room…what room was this? His dorm room didn't have carpet. There was carpet against his bare knees and someone banging on the door yelling housekeeping…and was he naked?!_

 _Only after everything had left his stomach, did Barry look around. There was the sound of someone spitting and then a groan. Barry froze and his eyes widened. "N-Naked…" he mumbled. There as a naked woman in front of him, well, on the other side of the room over another trash can. The woman, who Barry vaguely remembered was the blonde from the party last night Oil no Olive…no…Ollie! Ollie, that was her name. Barry tried to not stare but he couldn't stop himself._

 _"You're naked too, kid," she groaned. She then got up from her kneeling position by the other trashcan and began moving around the room while rubbing her head. As soon as she reminded him he was naked, Barry covered himself as best he could and began to blush brightly. Ollie laughed quietly at him and then made a small triumphant noise before picking up...her underwear…yeah okay…_

 _Barry exhaled slightly and looked at the clothes strewn around the bed. He grimaced at the sight of his inside-out jeans. Frowning, he crawled over to it and saw his boxers were still in the jeans. Oh God, his head felt like it was splitting open and he felt sick and-and—_

 _"You were that awkward, nerdy guy from last night, right?" Ollie asked quietly while wincing. She didn't bother putting on more clothes and instead moved toward a suitcase sitting on a couch. "Barry, right?"_

 _Barry groaned and tried to dress himself as quickly as he could. "Yeah…" He didn't know how he felt about the labels she gave him, but he continued speaking, "and you said your name was Ollie?" He got his boxers on without issue, but then he tripped as he tried to quickly put his jeans on. He fell onto the bed. The housekeeper must have left by this point because there was no more torturous yelling or banging._

 _Ollie laughed a little as he fell onto the bed. She put on a bra and then a loose fitting sweater that ended up hanging off one shoulder and revealing her bra strap. "You're cute, kid," she commented. Barry just closed his eyes in mortification. "Wait…I asked if you were of age right?" Ollie asked suddenly nervous. Barry opened one eye before grimacing at the light peeking through the curtains, so he closed his eye again and just nodded._

 _Ollie made a noise of some kind and then he heard the sound of a zipper. Barry only opened his eyes again when he felt the bed dip. "You okay, kid?" she asked._

 _"My name's Barry," he muttered into the comforter before pushing himself onto his slightly shaking arms. He then stood back up and pulled his pants up the rest of the way. Ollie was rolling her eyes, though she looked amused._

 _"Okay, Barry." There was a pause while Barry searched for his shirt. Ollie sighed and stood up again. "I'm going to get us some Tylenol and water," she announced._

 _"We should eat something if we have Tylenol," Barry blurted out, and Ollie smiled at him again._

 _"Okay then. Think of a good breakfast place while I get some Tylenol."_

 _Barry just blinked several times as he watched her head to the ensuite. What did he just get himself into? Barry distractedly found his shirt and began to put it on. Before he could think about leaving the hotel room in shame and embarrassment, Ollie returned with two cups of water and a pill bottle. His mouth was really dry and he could still taste the bile._

 _She gave him the cup and then set her cup down on the desk so she could open the bottle. She then handed them each two pills. Barry took the pills and downed the water. It would take about thirty minutes to activate and a little longer than that to start feeling ill for taking them on an empty stomach._

 _Ollie stared at Barry expectantly, and he raised an eyebrow while moving to the facial tissue box. He grabbed one tissue and began to blow his nose to get rid of the bile and food remnants he could feel in his nose. He hated throwing up._

 _Ollie sighed. "Barry, I don't know this city," she confessed. "My friend and I have been doing a party-circuit through his fraternity, so if you know a good place to eat, ya gotta tell me, kid."_

 _Barry blew his nose a few more times before throwing the tissue away and sighing. "I've never been hungover before, what do you even eat after 'cause I feel like I'm gonna…" he trailed off and closed his eyes._

 _He felt Ollie's hand on his shoulder and he jumped slightly. She was giving him a sympathetic look. "First hangover sucks, but all of them suck, so…" Ollie trailed off a little awkwardly. Barry closed his eyes and Ollie laughed a little. "Look, we just need a place we can get water, eggs, toast, coffee…"_

 _So…pretty much any diner. Barry groaned but eventually nodded his head._

 _"Okay, I got one place in mind," he said. Barry then looked over at her again and she was smiling._

 _"Great. I think Tommy left his sunglasses here, so…" she said. She extended the "so" as she looked for said glasses. She made a triumphant noise and went to the dresser the TV was on. She picked up a pair of sunglasses and handed them to Barry. She then went over to her purse, put it over her shoulder, and fished for her sunglasses._

 _Barry still felt incredibly awkward, but it was kind of nice having someone who had been through this all before to tell him what to do. Granted, who else would Barry call other than Joe, and that was definitely a no. Could he even be arrested if he wasn't caught with a drink in hand? Barry didn't want to find out, even if Joe wouldn't arrest Barry, his disapproval would be enough recrimination. Although, was this even normal of one-night stands? Was it a one-night stand...?_

 _Barry fidgeted with the hem of his shirt while they rode the elevator down to the lobby. They both grimaced at the light in the lobby, but putting on the sunglasses helped. As they were walking through the lobby, Barry felt stares on him and some whispering. Ollie gave a hiss while wincing._

 _"We were super obnoxious last night…ugh…" she whispered. Oh…that was why they were staring. Barry picked up his pace and exited the hotel. He paused once outside and oriented himself before turning in the direction of the diner. Ollie looked at him confused but eventually began following him._

 _"So how far is the dinner?" Ollie asked tiredly. Barry frowned as he thought._

 _"I don't know, ten-fifteen minutes away?"_

 _It felt like Ollie was going to say something but then eventually agreed to go with him._

 _"So…You a freshman?" she asked conversationally._

 _Barry looked over at her and nodded. "Yeah. First semester. What about you? What school are you going to?"_

 _Ollie grimaced slightly. "Credit-wise…I'm probably a freshman too," she said with a sigh. "Can we not talk about my school?"_

 _Barry frowned but nodded eventually. Okay…don't talk about school._

 _It was quiet between them despite the painfully loud sounds of cars and city-life around them. This was awkward—something needed to break the awkwardness. "So what are you planning to go into?" Ollie asked suddenly—probably feeling the awkwardness too._

 _"Uh…I want to be in CSI, so I'm going to be taking a lot of science classes with some criminal justice classes too. This school has the best forensics program."_

 _Ollie nodded and smiled slightly. "It's cool you know what you wanna do," she said. Ollie then threw her arms over her head and laced them behind her head. "I'm still kind of trying to figure that out." She laughed self-depreciatingly._

 _Barry frowned a little at that. "I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually," he consoled—or attempted to. She actually scoffed and looked around the street they were walking down. Barry frowned more. "Look, it can be really easy. What do you enjoy doing?" he asked._

 _She raised an eyebrow, which he could barely see over her large glasses. "Partying, drinking…" she trailed off suggestively, and Barry blushed while shaking his head._

 _"Come on, seriously, what do you enjoy?"_

 _"I told you what I enjoy," she shot back. It was Barry's turn to shoot a skeptical look back at her. She shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you, kid. I'm not driven like you… or Laurel," she mumbled the last name to herself._

 _"Then you just have to find what you're passionate about—something you_ can _be driven about," Barry argued._ _She gave him a side-long look._

 _"Well, what about you? Why do you want to be in forensics so bad?" she asked. Barry's steps faltered at the question, and he shoved his hands into his pockets before trudging on._

 _"Do all one-night stands end in interrogations?" he asked as he picked up his pace, but then what he said registered and he grimaced. "We didn't actually…" he began to ask as he looked back at her. He couldn't really remember anything after going back to the dancefloor with Ollie._

 _At the addition, Ollie gave him an amused look and hurried to walk beside him. "Well…" she began and leaned in slightly to his personal space, "we did wake up naked in bed together with our clothes everywhere."_

 _"B-but that doesn't mean we…you know…" Barry stuttered out. He was blushing now. Ollie laughed a little and patted him on the back slightly. He flinched a little, suddenly aware of a tender patch of skin along his shoulder blade. The skin felt warm and tight._

 _"Tell me, Barry, do you have a pet?" she asked and he shook his head. "A girlfriend?" Again, Barry shook his head. "A boyfriend?" Now he was just affronted, and Ollie smirked. She leaned in again and whispered, "I tend to scratch my partners, especially when I'm drunk." Oh… Barry blushed more. When were they going to be at the diner?!_

 _Ollie chuckled a little. "You are just too cute," she said amusedly._

 _"Can you not call me that," he groaned, and Ollie chuckled again. It was silent for a long moment after that._

 _Of course, Ollie broke it again, apparently uncomfortable with the silence. "But to answer your question…" she began. "No, one-night stands aren't usually like this." She paused then said, "Though…most guys try to make me breakfast or some shit like that and I just want to get home and shower." Barry was feeling that way right now and nodded his head._

 _"Granted, the girls I've gone home with are usually the same or they are so embarrassed they try to sneak out. I think that's the more normal reaction," Ollie commented casually. Barry tripped over his own feet and couldn't help but look at Ollie in shock. She gave a short laugh. "Oh…you are so cis," she teased—or at least the way she said the phrase made it seem like she was teasing him._

 _"Cis?"_

 _Ollie just shook her head at his question and patted his shoulder again. He shifted away from the touch because damn she scratched his shoulder up a lot._

 _They still kept walking, but Barry couldn't help but throw looks over at her. Ollie sighed after a while and answered his unasked question, "I don't like to label my sexuality, but yeah, I guess I'm bi—maybe pan; if that's that what you want to ask." Barry blushed more, and Ollie actually smirked at him. "You're such a virgin," she teased and threw an arm over his shoulder while pulling him closer to her body. "It's sooo cute!"_

 _"I guess I'm not anymore…" he muttered while covering his face in his hands. Ollie retracted herself from him and stopped walking. Barry went a few more steps before he stopped, brought his hands down, and looked over at her._

 _Ollie was frowning. Barry shifted uncomfortably. Ollie stepped over toward him. "Sorry…I…don't really remember…" she trailed off and sounded genuinely apologetic._

 _"I don't either…" Barry confessed. "But it's okay..." he lied. "Uh, the place is just a few more blocks away." Ollie perked up slightly though she still seemed down. The silence remained until they were at the diner and ordered their food. Barry followed Ollie's order and then they sat there in silence for a while longer. Barry began to fidget with his napkin while Ollie just sipped at the water the server left them._

 _Okay, this was too awkward—Barry needed to break the silence. "So your friend, was it Tommy? When are you supposed to meet up with him?" he asked._

 _Ollie raised an eyebrow at the question. "Oh, Tommy, yeah that's his name." she replied. "I think I remember him leaving with a few girls so I imagine he's going to be sleeping in later than we did." Damn… Ollie smirked at his impressed expression. "I'm pretty sure the girls were just looking for a guy to cover their same-sex explorations." She winked at Barry before sobering. "We'll probably meet up for dinner or something or go clubbing…" she trailed off, but didn't seem too enthused about her plans with Tommy._

 _"I thought you said you enjoyed partying and drinking?" Barry shouldn't challenge her or question things more, but he couldn't help it either._

 _Ollie opened her mouth and then closed it again. Before she could give a proper answer, the server came back with their coffees. Ollie reached over for a packet of sugar and tore it open before pouring it into her coffee. Barry wasn't a huge coffee drinker yet, so he added a few packets of sugar and instant-creamer to his cup._

 _"Ollie?" Barry prompted after he watched her stir her coffee for almost a minute_

 _She sighed. "I do like partying and all, but sometimes I just…" she wrinkled her nose. Barry frowned. Ollie sighed after a moment and said, "Do you ever feel like you're a walking stereotype? And then you have to meet the expectations of that stereotype?" Barry opened his mouth with his eyebrows raised; he didn't know how to respond._

 _Ollie just sighed again and stared at her coffee, "My other best friend, Laurel…she's…" Ollie trailed off and shook her head. "She's amazing and so smart and driven. She parties with us but she can be so serious too, and so playful and just…" Ollie set her elbow up on the table and rested her cheek in the palm. Barry recognized the look and tone she was using._

 _"You love her…" he murmured in realization. Ollie looked up surprised. Barry frowned then at his own cup. "But she probably just thinks of you as her best friend or sibling, right?" He laughed a little and sighed, but the laugh held no amusement._

 _"And I know she'll never return my feelings for her even though I've loved since..."Ollie trailed off again._

 _"Grade school?" Barry guessed, and Ollie closed her eyes before nodding into her hand. Barry exhaled in disbelief that someone had the same experience he did. "It sucks," he commented._

 _"Yeah…" Ollie sighed. "What's her name?" she asked, and Barry grimaced slightly._

 _"Iris…she's my foster sister and I_ know _she'll never see me as anything other than her best friend." Ollie reached out her other hand and brushed her fingers against his hand curled around the coffee mug._

 _Barry smiled sadly and looked up at Ollie as something occurred to him. "You don't want to go out tonight because you want to be better for Laurel?" he asked. Ollie retracted her hand and picked up her mug._

 _She took a sip before responding. "Yes and no. Every time I go out and go home with someone else…" she trailed off, and Barry winced a little. "Well, I'm sure you're feeling it too." If she was talking about the heavy feeling in his stomach, and the utter loneliness because he was never going to be with Iris…then yeah he did know._

 _Ollie shrugged after a moment. "I don't know. I guess I just feel like I'm in this rut and I don't really like it. I mean—I_ do _like partying" she rushed, and Barry laughed a little, "but I just don't want to be-be…defined by that part of me."_

 _Barry nodded his head slightly. "Then don't let it define you," he stated. He then grabbed some napkins from the dispenser on the table. "Do you have a pen?" Ollie frowned but began rooting through her tote purse. She retrieved a pen and handed it to him._

 _"What are you going to write?"_

 _"A To-Do list for you," he replied with a smile. He wrote "To-Do List" on the napkin. He then looked back up at Ollie. "So what are you passionate about, and when I say that I mean..."Barry trailed off and thought for a moment. "When you're walking through town what do you want to fix, or change? What makes you feel love or hate or stuff…" he ended lamely. His head still hurt so he wasn't as articulate as he'd like to be._

 _Ollie stared at him in shock for a moment, but then began thinking about it. "I don't know…I guess I…I..." she trailed off in thought. It was quiet for a moment longer and then Ollie perked up. "The Glades," she announced._

 _"The what?" Barry asked, but he still wrote it down despite having no clue what it meant._

 _Ollie grimaced. "It's like the…poor district," she whispered latter part. Barry eventually nodded in understanding._

 _"Okay, so why are you passionate about the Glades?"_

 _"Well…I just—" Ollie frowned. "Each year there's more homeless and beggars on the street, and once a year you hear about a tenement burning down…" she trailed off again and sighed. "I mean, so many jobs have been leaving Starling lately, and then the workers are unemployed and it sucks. Like—" She seemed to be struggling to find words for what she wanted to say._

 _"You want to help the Glades," Barry suggested, and Ollie looked surprised before nodding._

 _"Yeah…I want to help the Glades." She genuinely seemed shocked by this. Barry just smiled and wrote_ Help _beside_ Glades _._

 _"Okay, so now how can you help the Glades?"_

 _Ollie raised her eyebrows up. "Uh…I don't know… Fundraisers?" she asked. Barry nodded slightly and wrote it down, but it wasn't what he'd have suggested._

 _"Yeah, sure, but what about volunteering? Or brining in business, or getting into public office. I mean sometimes you gotta start small but…" he trailed off and shrugged. Ollie just stared at him like she had never thought of that before. "Uh…should I write those suggestions down?" he asked, and Ollie nodded her head adamantly. Barry did as he promised and wrote down the suggestions._

 _"Okay, so now how are you going to accomplish those things, like within school?" Barry asked, and Ollie looked a little overwhelmed. Barry chuckled. "Start small," he reminded her. "Get your gen eds done, then what major do you think you want to go into?"_

 _"I don't know? I've taken so many courses already and they're all so boring." Barry frowned but nodded; school wasn't for everyone._

 _"Well if you go into business you probably want a business major, then there could be law degrees, or poli-sci," Barry suggested. He wrote down each major and put question marks around them. "Joe—uh that's my foster dad—well, he told me to try different things before I settled into my major, so I'm doing that now." He hated it but he supposed there was some wisdom in it, plus it worked to fill out his gen eds._

 _Ollie nodded and then pulled the napkin toward her and smiled a little at it. "It almost seems too easy looking at this," she commented. Barry laughed a little and was about to say something when the server came back with their food. Barry then realized how hungry he was. Holy crap!_

 _…_

Holy crap his head was killing him! Barry needed food _now_! And maybe a sports drink—did he have any left? Damn, he couldn't remember now.

Stumbling out of his bed, Barry winced at the light filtering in through his open blinds. He looked down and saw he was still dressed in his clothes from last night. He hated sleeping in his jeans.

Groggily, Barry moved toward the fridge and pulled out a sports drink he began to chug. He then moved to the stove, pulled a pan out, and set it on the burner. Barry put a little oil in the pan before turning on the heat and moving back to the fridge. Just eggs, toast, and coffee. He hadn't really changed the hang-over remedy Ollie showed him that first time; he just added the sports drink to the mix.

With his breakfast ready and his coffee brewing, Barry moved to the couch and turned the TV on but immediately put it on mute as he winced in pain from the loudness. He then blinked and frowned. _Galaxy Quest_ … He introduced Ollie to Sci-Fi through that. He frowned and stared down at his food.

…

 _Barry stared as the check was brought to their table. While it had been really awkward at first, he was glad he went to the diner with Ollie, but the check meant they'd be parting ways soon. The check also meant an expense he hadn't planned for. However, before he could lament the loss of money, Ollie reached over for the bill while simultaneously pulling out her wallet._

 _"Whoa, wait!" Barry began. She looked at him with her eyebrow raised, but Barry didn't know if he wanted to finish what he was saying._

 _"You're a poor college student; I got this bill," she replied abruptly. Barry recognized that expression and blushed but was also relieved; then he began to frown._

 _"You're a poor college student too," he remarked. Ollie looked up at him in shock before openly laughing._

 _"You are too cute!" she exclaimed before sobering. "Oh, Barry, it's fine," she reassured before he could take offense at being called cute again. "My parents are already paying for tuition and everything; I've got money to spare." Oh…well then…Barry eased back into the booth._

 _Ollie was still smiling as she laid the bills down over the check. Neither of them moved afterwards, though. Ollie just settled back and began to stir her third cup of coffee. If that didn't say she didn't want to leave, then Barry was bad at judging things. Though really, he didn't want to part ways yet either._

 _He had surprisingly a lot of fun with Ollie, despite the awkward and embarrassing beginning to the day. Barry could list the number of people who would indulge him during his science rants on one hand, and Ollie was now among their number. Sure she was amused through it all, but she still asked the occasional question. Then, when Barry took pity on her and offered a change in topic, Ollie enthusiastically began talking about how the various sports teams were doing. Barry talked about that with Joe plenty, so he even had some of his own favorite teams he could talk about._

 _"So do you have any tests yet?" she asked casually, and Barry began laughing._

 _"School is starting Monday." Ollie grimaced at the reminder and then began laughing too. There was an awkward silence for a moment longer, which Barry broke._

 _"Umm…so what are you gonna do until you and Tommy go clubbing?"_

 _Ollie sighed before frowning. "I'm not really sure I even want to go out tonight," she mumbled. Ollie then sipped at her cold coffee—he assumed it was cold given her disgusted expression as she swallowed._

 _Barry shifted in his seat and looked at his mug—which he might be fidgeting with. "Do you maybe want to hang out?" he asked. This was probably not at all what you were supposed to do after a one-night stand, but it was so nice knowing someone else who knew what he felt. Unrequited love sucked and being able to open up about it just felt so…good._

 _"Tonight?" she asked in return. Barry shrugged as nonchalantly as he could. He then took a sip of his own cold coffee and made a face. Ugh…coffee should never be cold, unless it was iced._

 _Ollie smiled a little. "Sure," she agreed. "I'll just need to tell Tommy my change of plans when he wakes up. Speaking of—" Ollie stretched her arms over her head "—I think I need to sleep and shower." Yeah…Barry could still feel the sweat and alcohol on him from the night before._

 _"Yeah, a shower sounds_ really _good," he agreed and couldn't stop from smiling._

 _"So where do we meet? What are we gonna do?" Ollie asked, and Barry looked back at her with wide eyes. He was supposed to come up with something? "You are the one going to school here," Ollie pointed out, and Barry gave a little laugh._

 _"Oh yeah… Uh…" He didn't want Ollie to keep paying for everything. "I know it's kinda lame, but what if we just hung out at my dorm?" Barry suggested._

 _Ollie perked up. "A dorm. I've never been to a dorm!" She was really excited about the prospect. Oh man, Barry needed to do laundry now. He was going to wait until he went to Joe's next week—it was amazing how much laundry piled up in a week._

 _Ollie paused in her excitement after a moment. "Your roommate won't mind, right?" she asked. Barry's frantic thoughts about cleaning skidded to a stop and he frowned._

 _"My roommate requested a change of rooms a few days ago. He's moved to a different floor." Barry had a feeling he creeped the guy out with his spider web of impossible crimes which began with the murder of his mother. Plus his science ramblings…_

 _Ollie frowned but then flashed an almost mischievous smile. "Well, I guess that means you can bring girls—or guys—" she added quickly, "over whenever without having to worry about being interrupted."_

 _Barry couldn't even respond to the "or guys" comment while he blushed at her implications. Ollie laughed and took mercy on him. "I just want to hang out Barry; I was teasing you," she reassured him. Barry relaxed a little and laughed._

 _They settled back into a comfortable silence and sat there for a moment—neither sure what else to talk about. Ollie then pulled her phone out of her purse. "Why don't you text me the dorm's address and when I should come over?" she suggested before holding her phone out to him. He fumbled for a moment before pulling out his phone and handing it over to her. They entered each other's phone numbers before giving the phones back._

 _Ollie then got up. "I'll see you later," she stated. Barry watched her leave for a moment before he got up and left too. The walk back to campus was long and refreshing. When he finally got back to his dorm room he froze. When did it get so messy? And did it smell a little musty? It was already three and it would take a while to do laundry. Crap._

 _Barry tried his best to get everything done quickly, but it was already seven by the time Ollie texted him, and he still hadn't showered—although his room looked clean. Barry pulled the phone out and stared at it for a moment, blinking at the text. How was he supposed to take the text? Why did she want to stay over?_ Could _she stay over? Barry frowned, grabbed his keys, closed the door to his room, and went down to the front desk. There was an attendant looking bored as he stared at the space in front of him._

 _"Uh…Hi?" Barry greeted with a little wave as he tried to get the guy's attention. Barry's smile fell as the guy gave him a bored look and a raised eyebrow._

 _"Umm, so a friend wants to spend the night, but they aren't a student from here. Can they?" Barry asked._

 _"Yeah, your friend can," the guy answered as he nodded his head. "He just needs to sign this sheet—" he gestured to a sheet by his side "—and show me his photo ID." He…did that me no co-ed situations._

 _"A-and if my friend is a girl?" Barry stuttered. The guy raised both eyebrows and gave Barry an appraising look for a moment before gesturing back to the sheet._

 _"She still needs to sign it and present her photo ID."_

 _Oh. Wow, that was so much less drama than he thought it would be, but then this wasn't high school. As Barry just nodded a little surprised at the easiness of this, the desk worker caught his attention again._

 _"This is a dry campus though, so your friend can't bring in alcohol," the front desk person warned. Barry nodded his head and then pulled out his phone as he began to head back toward the stairs._

 _He pulled up Ollie's contact and pressed send. He waited a few seconds before she picked up._ "Hey Barry."

 _"Hey Ollie," he greeted in return. "So, I checked with the desk person, and you just have to sign in if you are going to spend the night. You'll need a photo ID." She hummed in understanding. "Um…can I ask why you want to spend the night?" he asked, and his nervousness must have been clear because she began to laugh._

"It's not like that Barry. Tommy trashed his room and he wants to use mine when he comes home from the club," _Ollie explained. Oh…_

 _"Oh, well okay then. Um, well then when do you want to come over?" Barry asked. Why did he feel so nervous and embarrassed? He didn't even remember_ being _with her last night so why did he feel so awkward?_

"I can be there in a bit. Do you want me to pick up some food?"

 _"Oh you don't have to—"_

"—Barry, poor college students don't turn down free food," _she interjected. He couldn't refute that logic._

 _"Okay, whatever sounds good to you," Barry consented. "Um, I'll text you the address, and then just call me when you get here so I can let you in. I think they lock the building after seven or something." He actually didn't know what time it was but it was better to be safe than sorry._

"Okay, see you in like thirty minutes."

 _Barry said his own good bye and quickly texted the address after he had hung up. He was right outside his room, so he fumbled with his keys before rushing to get a shower in before Ollie arrived—Barry was beginning to feel grungy._

 _By the time he made it back to his room after the shower, his phone was buzzing. Oh shit! He quickly picked it up. "Hello?" he answered._

 _"Hey Barry, I got here a little early," Ollie said. "The doors were still unlocked but the desk guy told me to wait for you to sign me in as your guest." Oh, so they locked the doors later than he thought._

 _"Ah yeah! I just—one minute!" Barry hung up without saying good bye, but he heard Ollie laughing before the phone clicked shut. Barry dropped his towel, threw on his boxers, sweatpants and then a shirt. He stumbled into the closet door in his haste, but then he put on his shower flip-flops again and was half-way out the door before realizing he forgot his keys. Shit. He hurried back in before the door closed and automatically locked him out. He grabbed his keys, student ID, and was on his way down to the front desk._

 _He was practically panting by the time he got down the last of the steps. Ollie was there, in the same outfit from earlier, though with her hair pulled up into a messy bun and still looked damp. She also had a bag with some kind of Chinese characters? Ollie looked amused while the desk guy just stared at her._

 _"Hey, sorry you had to wait," Barry greeted as he gave a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of his still wet hair._

 _Ollie just smiled. "It's fine Barry," she assured him. She then pulled out her ID and handed it to the desk guy while Barry handed the guy his student ID. Once they were checked in (and the front desk guy did a double take when he saw Ollie's ID—which was something to think about later), Barry led her to the stairway._

 _"So what's in the bag?" he asked._

 _"Sushi. I was feeling sushi tonight," Ollie stated simply._

 _"I've never had sushi," Barry confessed a little sheepishly; after all, they were on the coast so he should have had some. Joe had never been a fan of it, so no sushi for the Wests. Chinese he liked, yes, because they'd have it once a week at times, but sushi…not so much._

 _Ollie just looped her arm in his. "Well, let's remedy that," she announced._

 _Barry got a few stares from the other guys on his floor as they made it to his room. He unlocked it quickly to escape the stares. Ollie immediately dropped the bag of sushi onto his bed while she looked around the tiny room._

 _"This is so cool!" she exclaimed._

 _Barry had to laugh at her enthusiasm while she explored the small space. Barry picked up his forgotten towel and changed into his slippers before hanging up the towel. However, when he turned back around, the color drained from his face. Shit, why did he forget to hide the spider web of cases? Ollie had her head cocked slightly to one side as she examined it._

 _"A-ah, hey, do you want to watch something?" he asked nervously. Ollie blinked and moved over to the bed which was in front of the TV._

 _"Sure, what do you have in mind?" she asked before unrolling the paper bag containing their sushi. Barry shrugged and grabbed the remote before he sat down next to her. He turned it on and it began to play the last thing he had put in the DVD player._

 _"Nice set up for a freshman," Ollie commented as she pulled out two containers, and Barry gave her a smile in return._

 _"I used to do these little repair jobs for an elderly neighbor, and he gave me the TV after graduation. Joe got me the DVD player."_

 _Ollie nodded her head and then held out some chopsticks to Barry._

 _"You know, despite the fact we'd get takeout once a week, I still can't use chopsticks right," Barry confessed. He laughed a little self-depreciatingly while_ Galaxy Quest _began playing._

 _"Well," Ollie began as she pulled her own chopsticks out from their paper wrapping, "let me bestow the wisdom of using chopsticks properly." Barry laughed at her exaggeration but paid attention as she instructed him on how to hold the chopsticks. She then opened one of the containers._

 _"Do you like hot things?" Ollie asked as she poured soy sauce into the lid of the container she balanced on her knees. Barry moved over some on the single-sized bed and gestured for her to set it between them. She did and held out a packet of wasabi. Oh…_

 _"Uh, a little is fine," he replied. Ollie nodded and added some to the soy sauce before mixing it in with the chopsticks._

 _"Okay, so these are cucumber, you'll eat these as a palate cleanser," Ollie explained as she pointed to the rolls. "These are tempura rolls; it has shrimp fried in tempura batter so newcomers to sushi tend to handle it best. This is tuna on top of these rolls, this one is a spicy crab roll." She then pointed out several more sushi rolls with her chopsticks. "I can probably eat a whole container by myself so…" Ollie trailed off with a smile before she dug in._

 _Barry smiled and imitated Ollie's movements but started with the tempura roll. It wasn't bad. He moved on to one of the raw fish ones. The texture was a little strange but it was still really good. Ollie's attention eventually turned to the TV and she looked puzzled._

 _"What's this?" she asked._

 _"_ Galaxy Quest _," he answered a little surprised. "It's like one of the best Sci-Fi parodies. So basically these aliens saw a_ Star Trek _like show and thought it was real, so they ask the actors to help them out," Barry explained._

 _"So it's a spoof off of those_ Star Trek _shows?" she asked._

 _"Yeah, but you don't need to know the shows in order to enjoy the movie," he reassured her with a smile. "Why don't I start it over—it picked up where I had stopped watching last night."_

 _"Okay," Ollie agreed, and Barry opened up scene selection and started the movie over._

 _"I've never really been into Sci-fi, but this sounds like it will be pretty funny," Ollie admitted, and Barry couldn't help but smile over at his new friend. Well, he thought of her as a friend. It was weird how it came about, but she was definitely his friend._

 _"Sci-fi's great." Barry paused, "If you want, I have a pretty good collection if you want to watch more after this one."_

 _Ollie gave him a side long look before nodding. "Alright. Will you point out when they are being scientifically inaccurate and ridiculous, please?" she asked._

 _"Really?" Barry asked. He loved sci-fi but he also loved critiquing it. "Because I won't hold back," he warned._

 _"Do your worst." Her smile was infectious._

 _…_

Barry was feeling better by the early evening, and he had even begun to clean his apartment—especially since his roommate was too busy to. He had just sat down with a bowl of soup when there was a knock. Frowning, Barry answered the door and blinked in surprise.

"Joe, Iris?" he greeted. Why were they here? They both smiled at Barry as they entered the apartment and hugged him.

"We thought we should surprise you," Iris explained when she pulled away.

"We also brought some take-out from that Chinese restaurant near your campus," Joe added as he gestured to the bags in his hands. Barry smiled a little; somethings never change.

"It's better than soup," Barry admitted. He let them in and began to put his soup in a container—it would be lunch tomorrow.

Joe and Iris were already setting the boxes of takeout out onto the small table in the apartment—he and Joe had found the table and chairs driving around town after the school year ended. Barry grabbed plates and serving spoons for them. It wasn't until he was part way into his food that Joe brought up what Barry really didn't want to talk about.

"How are you doing Bar? It's been a year," he stated.

Barry swallowed his food and sighed. "I know Joe…" he mumbled. Barry moved his food around for a moment. "It's just hard to think she's really dead…"

"We know Barry," Iris added as she set her hand against his; his hand tingled from the touch. "You really wanted to get back together with Queen when…it happened, but there will be other people."

"Iris," Joe began to warn, and Barry just closed his eyes.

Iris pulled back her hand. "Dad, they were dating for like two months—"

"Iris," Joe said with a sigh now. Barry set his chopsticks down and rubbed his face. The reason why he didn't want to move on was because then he would be back to pinning after Iris, and that was worse than mourning someone he had only just started dating.

There was an awkward silence around the table, and Iris sighed. "Sorry Barry, I just don't like seeing you so down. You were so happy when you were seeing Queen, and then just so…I don't know," she shrugged, "when she broke up with you out of the blue."

"I know Iris," he murmured. Barry still didn't like to think about the break-up. "But I can't help but think if maybe we were together still she might not have gone on that boat, you know?" Joe set a hand on Barry's shoulder and squeezed a little.

Iris just looked at her plate and pushed her food around. It was tense for a moment, but Joe broke the silence. "Hey why don't we watch _Singing in the Rain_?"

Barry looked up at Joe in surprise for a moment. Joe just smiled a little more and Iris touched his hand again. Barry smiled sadly down at his plate of food. _Singing in the Rain_ was his favorite movie to watch when he was feeling down or missing his mom. Of course Iris and Joe would know just what to do to cheer him up.

Autumn would always suck but maybe it would get better, and he could move on past Ollie and Iris.

* * *

 **TBC**

* * *

 **A/N:** I use laugh a lot in this story... Anyways, I won't be updating until probably mid-October. Hope you enjoyed ~ much love, depressedchildren


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Arrow_ or _Flash._ They are property of Detective Comics and the CW. I gain no profit by writing this fictional story.

 **Summary:** One night in 1984 could have gone a number of ways with far reaching consequences. While time sets most things, the ancestors of time travelers are the ones with true freewill. Poor Eobard Thawne, his ancestors are especially bent on free-will and heroics; if only they'd stop fucking with the timeline _he_ knew. Eobard will just have to wait for a chance to make sure _his_ timeline happens, no matter how free-willed his ancestors were.

 _ **A/N:**_ I am late to update, but I really don't know if I should keep updating this. I mean...I have lots of ideas, especially for down the road, but is this boring? Anyways enjoy, I will try to update in a month ~ with love, depressedchildren

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** Friends and Shitty Situations

* * *

 **2009**

Barry sighed as the news played out. Another terrorist attack, of course. This one was on Hong Kong now, and the news reporters were saying Chinese gangs were involved. There just never seemed to be good news anymore. Hell, Barry had been dealing with bad news since his mom died, it just wasn't personal bad news anymore. Come next year, he will have lived half his life in a country at war; it seemed unreal there were still troops overseas. Barry closed his eyes and sighed. He had a lab report due in the morning; he needed to stop watching the news.

…

 _2007_

 _Barry distractedly reached for his phone. "Hello?" he answered; he wondered if it was Joe checking in on him._

"Hey Barry!" _Oh that was Ollie._

 _"Ollie, what's up?" he greeted properly. Barry leaned back in his desk chair. He needed a break from his text book anyway._

"Not much, just wanted to see how you're doing…" _Ollie trailed off, and Barry narrowed his gaze slightly. Okay, Ollie was a terrible liar,_ and _she sounded bored._

 _"Uh-huh. Well, I'm doing fine. Just working on my anthropology homework. The professor assigned us two chapters for class Thursday and we have another two chapters next week. We also have this on-line quizzes after each chapter."_

"Wow. Are the chapters big?" _she asked. Okay, this was beginning to remind him of Iris when she was stalling before she asked Barry for a favor. Barry gave a non-committal hum and waited for Ollie to get to the point._

 _Ollie caved and sighed._ "Okay, so you know how you're into all that science stuff…?" _Science stuff, yep this sounded like a favor Iris had made plenty of times._

 _"Okay, what theory are you struggling with?" he asked as he leaned forward in his chair and set his arms against the desk._

"How did you know I was—"

 _"A lot of my friends ask for help on their 'science stuff.'" He could practically see Ollie's wince when he quoted her._

"Yeah…well…I don't get this at all!" _she confessed, and Barry chuckled a little._

 _"Okay, read the question to me and maybe we can figure this out?" he suggested._

 _Ollie gave a relieved sigh._ "You're the best, Barry. Okay so the problem is…"

…

Sometimes Ollie wished she could call up Barry like she used to whenever she had questions about something out of her depth. Although, she highly doubted he knew about torture and interrogation.

Ollie rubbed her face and felt sick. How many people died because she hadn't gotten the information out of that man in time? Maybe Waller was right? Maybe… NO! Waller was…was wrong she had to be.

Ollie composed herself as she heard Waller's heels clacking against the floor behind her. "Miss Queen," Waller addressed. Ollie turned around slowly to face Waller and paled. "I wonder if your son will be enough motivation for you to extract the information we need," Waller asked.

There was a baby in the older woman's arms. She held him stiffly but that was William. Ollie could see it in his eyes, his hair color—which had darkened into a brown like his father's—No! That couldn't be William. It couldn't…

"We found him with a Bratva member, Anatoly Knyazev. He had put up a fight to keep hold of the boy." Ollie's fists clenched at that. "But if you need further proof, we could do a DNA test, although I'm told a mother always knows when a child is hers," Waller commented. Whatever she saw in Ollie's stance satisfied her.

"Good," she said with a nod. "Perhaps you can get somewhere with this new motivation," Waller commented.

"Are you just going to keep him from me?" Ollie asked, her voice was tight, and Waller raised an eyebrow.

"Oh no, he will stay with you and Maseo's family—I cannot spare my operatives to babysit; however…" Waller paused, and Ollie straightened when Waller stared coldly at her. "Make no mistake—you run and Maseo's family still dies. Do not fulfill your missions in an orderly fashion, and we _will_ take your son from you."

"I thought you said—" Waller's look cut Ollie off.

"It would not be babysitting but molding a future operative," Waller threatened. Ollie clenched her fists more tightly. "William will be waiting for you to return to the Yamashiros, but do not return until you have the information we require."

Why couldn't Ollie go back to a simpler time? Before the killing, before the torture, before the constant need to survive. Ollie hated the person she was becoming, but she needed to do this. Waller had William now. Granted, Ollie never thought she'd get to see her son again after she left him with Anatoly on the sub, and now…now…

Her new victim came into the room. Ollie breathed and calmed herself. She turned around toward the duffle bag with her arrows. This was for William, for Akio and Tatsu and Maseo, for national security... Ollie took a steady breath and notched the arrow.

…

 _Ollie groaned as she stared down at the textbook in front of her. What did any of this even mean? She sure as hell didn't know. She hated math, she hated science, and she also didn't really like her Myths and Legends class. Why was she taking two science classes in one semester? Ollie looked over at her phone. She had already bothered Barry once today about homework and she couldn't tell if he was starting to get annoyed._

 _Normally Ollie might ask Laurel, but it just…hurt being around Laurel and not being_ with _her. Knowing Ollie could never be with Laurel, well, it made things worse. Ollie sighed, grabbed the phone, and called Barry again._

"Hello, Ollie. Another question about cosine?" _Barry sounded amused and a little tired._

 _"Yes, but that's not—I want to talk about something else." Wow, she was stumbling over her words like Barry now. Ollie sighed and tried to think about how to phrase this. She was trying to not party as much or really at all, but Tommy was making it increasingly difficult. However, not hanging out with Tommy made her really bored and lonely. But then, if Ollie hung out with Laurel, she'd just feel worse._

"Okay…?" _Barry began slowly; now she got him nervous._

 _Ollie rolled her eyes to the ceiling. "So…I'm bored and I'm really trying to take this whole school thing seriously," she explained._

"Yes…?" _Now Barry sounded like he didn't trust her or where she was going._

 _"The thing is," she stressed, "Tommy is trying to get me to go out every night I_ don't _have class the next day, and I just…" She wasn't being articulate._

"Ollie, what are you trying to say?" _he asked._

 _"Can I just stay with you over the weekend and study with you?" she asked, though it sounded a bit desperate to her own ears._

"Uh… for real? Isn't that kind of a drive for you?" _he asked surprised._

 _She got the implication in his words. Did the kid not know how much money she came from? Wait…did he not know she was Olivia Queen? Oh my god, what if that was it?! This kid…so freaking clueless it was cute._

 _"It's fine Barry," she assured him. She couldn't help but smile while saying it._

 _There was a long pause._ "Can we hang out too? Iris just got a new boyfriend…" _he trailed off as if hoping she'd fill in the rest of it._

 _"School's only been in session two weeks; it's probably a short fling," Ollie consoled. Really, people mostly hooked up that early into the term; the lasting relationships wouldn't start showing up for a few more months._

 _Barry sighed._ "Yeah, but she just sounds so serious and happy and it sucks," _he practically whined._

 _"Yeah it does. Laurel is kind of seeing this one guy. He has, like, these_ abs _and it's disgusting," Ollie scoffed. Barry chuckled slightly, and Ollie joined him before they both sobered._

"When are you thinking of coming down or over—what city are from again?" _Barry asked, and Ollie chuckled slightly at Barry's articulation—everything was right in the world again._

 _"Starling," Ollie reminded him and he mumbled_ "oh right." _Ollie shook her head, he was just too cute sometimes—it was refreshing. "I don't have any Friday classes, what about you?" Ollie asked._

"No Friday classes? For real? That's so not fair," _Barry lamented but refocused on her question._ "Ah, my last class is done Friday around one. I guess if you want to hang out after I'm done with class that would be cool."

 _"Awesome. How long should I pack for?"_

"Uh…" _Barry was thrown by the question. Ollie chuckled slightly._

 _"Should I leave Sunday, or Monday morning? I don't have class until the afternoon," Ollie explained, and Barry hummed._

"Uh whenever. I am kind of lonely here without a roommate," _Barry admitted with a self-depreciating laugh. Ollie joined the laughter._

 _"Okay." She paused a moment. "I will bring provisions. Any requests?"_

"Uh…I don't have a fridge, but there's a common area kitchen so…" _he trailed off again as if letting Ollie finish the thought. She understood Barry's reservations._

 _"Don't worry about it Barry." They we were silent for a moment while Ollie stared at her textbook. "Hey, so about cosine, how does it relate to sin?" Barry laughed again and they were back to math talk._

 _…_

Ollie wasn't sure what to think after everything that had happened. Maseo had been willing to risk thousands…thousands for his family. Could Ollie even do that? Oh God. She could only hope her mother had gotten her message. God damn it! Where was William? Why did they take him from her?

Ollie looked up as the door opened and two men came in with Waller just behind them. "Miss Queen, I understand you orchestrated part of the Yamashiro's escape with the fake Omega."

Ollie didn't say anything. Waller pressed her lips together in displeasure. "I suppose we will begin training William. It will be language acquisition for the time being," the older woman stated in an intimidating fashion. Ollie nearly went to pin or punch or do _something_ to Waller, but the operatives around Ollie grabbed her arms and held her back.

"Miss Queen, you will tell me where the Yamashiro's are, are we clear," Waller threatened.

"Fuck you," Ollie spat, but her voice was shaking.

Waller raised an eyebrow. "I am not above killing a child with no birth certificate," she warned.

"You want him as an asset, like me," Ollie tried to call her bluff. Waller just laughed and made a subtle gesture to the operatives around her. Ollie was pulled out of her seat and then forced onto a table. The only thing keeping her panic at bay was her anger for Waller and the fact Waller wouldn't do what Slade did. Her underlings put a cloth over her face and then the water began to pour. Oh god!

"We'll see how long your silence lasts Miss Queen," Waller commented mildly. Ollie could barely hear Waller's words over the splashing of water. Ollie was choking, she couldn't breathe, but damn it if she would give that bitch the satisfaction of seeing her break.

…

 _Ollie was quite proud of herself, she brought one suitcase, and one suitcase only! Granted it was a big bag that didn't carry much clothes. Ollie had only brought the clothes she was wearing, some sweats to study in, and two shirts (plus changes of underwear). She was wearing jeans and a baggy sweater like the one she wore last week but this one was in_ green. _She had always liked green._

 _The rest of her suitcase was filled with the promised provisions. Cereal, apples, chocolate, bananas, some containers of Raisa's borscht, a little half-gallon of almond milk, and two bowls and spoons—she hadn't seen any dishware the last time she stayed at Barry's dorm. The milk and soup was fine since it hadn't been that long of a trip, but they'd need to go in the fridge quickly. She figured most college boys would avoid almond milk and beet soup so they'd be fine in the fridge; hopefully Barry wouldn't be adverse to it._

 _As Ollie traversed the campus toward Barry's dorm, she saw him reading on a little green hill outside the library. "Barry!" she called, and he perked up before sitting up more fully. He was reading some scientific journal._

 _Barry's gaze finally alighted on her, and he hoped to his feet with a bright smile on his face. "Ollie!" he greeted._

 _They met in the middle, and Barry stood there a little awkwardly, as if he was trying to decide whether or not to hug her. Ollie rolled her eyes and held out her free arm. Barry gave an embarrassed laugh and took the offer for a hug._

 _They then began heading toward his dorm. "So what were you reading?" Ollie asked._

 _Barry's eyes literally lit up. "It's an article on S.T.A.R. Lab's plans for a particle accelerator. Dr. Harrison Wells has been planning this for like the past seven years and he's finally willing to talk about to the journals. It just so cool!" Barry was on a roll now, and half of what he was saying went over her head, but his enthusiasm was just contagious. Ollie found herself smiling with him and asking about the things she hadn't understood. He was happy to explain._

 _By the time they were at Barry's dorm room again, Barry realized he was rambling. "Oh…uh, right, how as the drive, or train or—how did you get here?" he asked as he scratched his cheek._

 _Ollie just had to ruffle his hair as she replied. He was too cute._

 _"Hey!" he exclaimed as he ducked out of the way._

 _Ollie chuckled a little before opening her suitcase, and setting down her backpack. "So I got almond milk and brought some borscht; those should be safe in the fridge, right?" she asked._

 _"Uh? I don't know," Barry replied with a shrug. "What was it you told me about free-food?" Right, college students would eat it._

 _"Okay, you have a sharpie?" she asked. Barry thought for a moment before turning toward his cluttered desk and then moving some papers before finding one. He tossed it to her, and Ollie caught it before writing_ QUEEN _in big black letters across both of items._

 _"Okay, kitchen common area?" she asked him expectantly once she stood._

 _"Queen?" Barry looked confused, and Ollie totally called it! He didn't know she was Olivia Queen; she was going to wait for it to click._

 _"Oh, that's your last name—I guess we did forget to exchange those," Barry answered his own question and laughed sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. Seriously?! Ollie stared at him in disbelief for a moment, and he looked back at her clueless. He ignored her skepticism as they left the dorm room._

 _Ollie just shook her head while they rounded the hallway corner. Ollie could now see the common area kitchen. "You are just adorable," she said in amusement. She probably should stop thinking and saying that, but he just was. She hadn't been around anyone so sincere and kind in a long time that it kind of awed her. Couple that with his naivety, awkward mannerisms, and enthusiasm…well, cute just was the most fitting term for Barry._

 _Barry groaned, "Can you not call me that!"_

 _"You're whining," Ollie teased, and Barry blushed as he covered his face._

 _"I'm a guy; I'm not supposed to be cute."_

 _Ollie snorted. "Bullshit. Guys can be cute and there's nothing wrong with that." She then smirked. "In fact, I like the cute ones," she teased with a wink, which only made Barry blush more._

 _There were some of Barry's floor-mates staring openly at them as they passed; they were in disbelief._ They _knew who she was but this kid didn't. Ha! It was so funny. She wasn't sure what that meant about Barry, but this boded well in her book._

 _"Still…" Barry whined once he got his flustered state under control._

 _Ollie rolled her eyes. "Okay, I have this great Trans book you need to read."_

 _"Trans-what? Also…" Barry trailed off teasingly. He was trying to tease her about reading an actual book! She shoved him playfully. Barry just laughed._

 _"Oh shut up. And yes, it was Trans story," she replied, perhaps a touch defensive. "It was really good and made me think about gender more, and stuff." She waved it off casually as she opened the unsurprisingly empty fridge and put the two items in there._

 _"Why were you reading a Trans story?" Barry asked as he leaned against the counter._

 _"I went to some LGBTQ book club—admittedly, to get in this one girl's pants—well she's pre-op trans, but…" Ollie trailed off when she noticed Barry trying to work that out, but was instead short circuiting._

 _"Okay," she quickly hurried on. "Let's just get you back to the dorm before your cis-male brain has an aneurism," Ollie teased and began to shepherd him out of the kitchen area._

 _"What does cis even mean?!" he asked energetically. He wasn't really complaining; she could tell because he had this ever-present smile on his face._

 _"You didn't google it?"_

 _Barry laughed a little. "I forgot," he admitted._

 _Ollie shook her head. "Cis-gender is someone who assumes heterosexuality, and performs their gender and sexuality along heteronormative…rules." She wasn't sure how to finish that but she clearly stumped Barry._

 _"Uh…heteronormative? Like putting heterosexuality as the normal mode?" Barry questioned. Ollie nodded, and Barry hummed like he had just learned something interesting._

 _"So what's that about performing gender?" Barry asked as a follow-up._

 _Ollie shrugged. "I don't know. The girl I was with though kept saying gender was a performance so…" she trailed off also hoping Barry would pick up what she was saying._

 _"Should we google that?" Barry asked with his own smile, and Ollie shrugged again. "And the other stuff you mentioned? Was that all from the girl or the book club?"_

 _Ollie looked elsewhere for a moment. "Maybe, so what?"_

 _Barry shrugged this time. "You just seem interested in it, so maybe it could be something you major or minor in," he suggested._

 _Ollie blinked for a moment. She could major in gender and sexuality? Weird, but if it was a thing, it might actually be fun to study._

 _"I'll think about it," Ollie paused. "So, should we study for now and then watch movies tonight?"_

 _Barry hummed in contemplation. "Study now," he agreed, and they were back at his dorm._

 _Once they entered the room, he gestured for Ollie to sit on the bed while he moved over to his cluttered desk. Ollie pulled over her backpack and pulled out her first text book. They worked in silence for fifteen minutes before Barry got up and moved over to the stereo and plugged his iPod in._

 _"Do you mind if we listen to some music?" Barry asked. Ollie looked up and nodded. Barry started to press play but then paused. "Wait. Was that nod, yes go ahead and play, or yes I do mind so don't play music?"_

 _Ollie laughed a little. "Go ahead and play the music," she responded. Barry sighed a little in relief and pressed play before adjusting the volume so the music became white noise. He then went back to his seat. For the next several hours, Barry and Ollie worked with Ollie asking questions on occasion when she got to the review section of her text book._

 _Barry stood up suddenly and stretched his back. Ollie actually heard something pop. He then walked over toward the bed and grabbed his own backpack but paused as he stared at the still open—and forgotten suitcase._

 _"Coco puffs?" he asked as he looked at the cereal box in the suitcase in surprise. "I haven't had those in ages."_

 _"That's what I was thinking too when I saw them in the grocery store," Ollie confessed, and Barry laughed as he crouched down to search through his bag. "I also brought some Cheerios in case you didn't want to feel nostalgic—they're in the little container."_

 _"Well it's good to have the cheerios just in case we eat all the other cereal before breakfast actually starts," Barry added with a smile still in place._

 _Ollie laughed and then their eyes met and Ollie wondered if he was thinking the same thing she was. "Thea, my baby sister, she and I used to have competitions to see who could catch the most cereal without dropping any."_

 _"Like tossing them at each other and catching them without your hands?" Barry asked for clarification, and Ollie nodded her head. "Iris and I used to do that too."_

 _This was going to feel so childish but…oh what the hell! Barry forgot about his books and grabbed the cereal box. Ollie pulled her feet in so Barry could sit on the other end of the bed. He opened the box and then they both grabbed a handful before they proceeded to act like children. They were both actually pretty good at it. In fact, they lost count after a while and then one of Barry's tosses landed on Ollie's closed eyelid. The game ended with them laughing again._

 _"Oh man," Ollie breathed in after a moment. "I need some water."_

 _Barry sobered, though continued to chuckle every now and then. He closed up the box and set it on what would have been his roommate's desk space—it was covered with different snacks, cup ramen, and soup._

 _"I'll show you to the drinking fountain. I think I have a cup somewhere…" he was looking through the piled containers, but couldn't see one. "I could have sworn I had a cup somewhere…"_

 _"It's fine."_

 _"You sure?" he asked. Ollie nodded, and Barry shrugged. He was half-way out the door when he doubled back and grabbed his keys. "The doors automatically lock behind you," he explained his hasty actions._

 _"And how many times have you forgotten?" Ollie teased._

 _Barry gave an embarrassed laugh. "Okay, I forgot like five times the week I moved in."_

 _Ollie raised both eyebrows in shock. "And how many times last week?" she asked. Barry blushed slightly and scratched his cheek. "I take it more than once?" Ollie guessed. He grimaced a little. Okay, that was a bit sad. Ollie shook her head while smiling and followed Barry out of the room._

 _The fountain wasn't that far away. The water had a metallic aftertaste, but it felt good. Barry took a drink next and then they went back to the room to continue their studying. Ollie did however hear some of Barry's floor-mates whispering._

 _"Is that Olivia Queen? What the hell is she doing with that guy?"_

 _Barry didn't seem to notice the whispering. Well then… Smiling to herself, Ollie decided to loop her arm in Barry's just because. He was her friend after all, and yeah, they kind of went around that backwards. She kind of was disappointed she couldn't remember what happened after they got to the hotel room—granted she could barely remember getting in the cab and then the lobby. Maybe it was for the best she couldn't remember? Barry was a good kid…really good._

 _Once back in the room they continued studying, and Ollie had actually made some headway on her assignments before she decided they should eat. Barry was at first leery of the borscht, but Raisa made the best soup, so Ollie wasn't surprised when Barry asked for seconds._

 _With dinner done, they went to the front desk and signed Ollie in. She also used the restrooms down there because otherwise they'd need to ask someone on the female floor about the code to get into the bathroom—Ollie wanted to put that off until the next day if possible. Ollie then agreed to watch another sci-fi movie but convinced Barry to watch an action movie next. They were both yawning by the time the last movie finished. Barry got off the bed, and helped Ollie move the suitcase further from the bed._

 _"Okay, I'll just go give you some privacy—"_

 _"Barry, it's okay—you've seen me naked_ because _we slept together." It as still weird to think about it, and Barry probably did too given his blushing and sputtering. God he was just too damn cute not to keep teasing like that. Ollie just pulled her arms into the sweater and then unclasped her bra before slipping the straps off her shoulders. It fell to the ground and she put her arms back through the sleeves. Barry blushed more, and Ollie shook her head. The dorm was kind of warm, so she probably didn't need to wear her sweatpants tonight. Ollie then began to undo her pants and Barry turned around hastily._

 _Pants and bra off, Ollie felt so much more comfortable. She grabbed both items and put them in her suitcase, which a frozen Barry still stood over._

 _"Barry?" she asked gently, and he jumped._

 _"Umm…" He was like this the last time she stayed over—he even insisted on sleeping on the roommate's vacant bed without any sheets. She'd have thought he realized this would happen when he agreed to host her for the weekend._

 _"Okay Barry, here's how this is going to work," she said, and forcibly turned him to face her. "I'm not going to kick you out of your bed again. We're gonna be adults about this and share the bed, okay?" He was blushing but he nodded before swallowing nervously. "Also, if I want privacy, I will tell you, okay? I'm comfortable with my body and it's not like you haven't seen it before." She added the last part just to see how red his face could turn. "Now, if you need privacy, let me know and I can head out into the—"_

 _"No! I'll just go to the bathroom," he blurted out. He then grabbed his sleep clothes and hurried out the door—and forgot his keys. Ollie waited patiently until she heard Barry's tentative knock. She opened it and let in a still embarrassed Barry. When they finally laid down for the night, Barry was stiff and awkward as Ollie set her head on his shoulder, but she eventually felt him relaxing and his breath evening out._

 _…_

 **2010**

Waller would never be done with Ollie. She had kept her son in a secret facility when Shreve came and wouldn't let Ollie take him with her. It turned out for the best, but Ollie knew William was just a bargaining piece Waller could hold over Ollie that Shreve didn't know about. Still, it was a good thing the woman did what she had or William would have died just shy of two years old.

She may have saved Waller from Shreve's men, but that woman wouldn't let her have her son. Again, it ended up being for the best, but Ollie had resented the woman at the time. Regardless, Ollie had failed to secure the Omega in Hong Kong and her punishment for this? Akio was dead, her son was _still_ being trained as an assassin, and she was inches from her family and Laurel but she couldn't be with them. Waller was such a bitch. While Ollie had taken her anger out on Shreve and…it had felt good, it didn't give her son back to her or bring Akio back.

Everything…all of _this,_ it was changing her and she didn't know if she liked how it was changing her.

Ollie shot back the next drink and wondered when Waller would give Ollie her next mission now that the Omega dilemma was over.

Ollie dropped her head forward and closed her eyes. She heard someone sit next to her and then something was slid across the bar top. Ollie opened her eyes and eyed the manila folder in front of her. She glanced over to her left, but the operative as already leaving. Ollie opened the file and saw her target.

As she read through the mission details, Ollie scowled. She hated Waller and part of her want to kill the bitch. Waller was never gonna let William go as long as Ollie proved useful to her.

Ollie's plane would leave in fifty from Ferris Air, and once at her destination she would have to pretty herself up and seduce her target. Talk about spy shit. She'd rather stick to torture at this point—at least that didn't give her panic attacks like intimacy did. Although, when a secret military group pays for someone's vaginal reconstruction surgery, one should imagine the military group wanted some use out of it. Maybe she wouldn't have to sleep with this guy to get what she needed?

Ollie closed her eyes one more time and asked the bartender for one more shot. She knocked it back before pulling out some crumpled bills she had gotten as stipend after her last job. Maybe if she did this job, she could be there for William's second birthday? Waller always promised visits after a successful mission. Heh, it was two years since she had killed Fyres, two years since she unwittingly became Waller's personal attack dog and spy.

…

 _Ollie and Barry had finished the box of Coco Puffs by Sunday morning and were left with the Cheerios; it was a sad alternative. Still, it_ was _more adult of them. Barry was sitting cross legged on his desk chair as he faced Ollie who was eating on his bed._

 _"So, I signed up to help at this local soup kitchen," Barry began after swallowing some cereal, "and I e-mailed the organizers and they said I could bring someone to help—you'd just need to sign up as a volunteer when we got there."_

 _Ollie froze with her spoon halfway to her lips. Soup kitchen? She had heard of those. Barry started to fidget at her silence. He scratched the side of his face with his free hand. "Well, I mean, you don't have to go with me," he added. He shrugged as nonchalantly as he could while laughing in unease. "I just figured since you were maybe going to start volunteering it would be less intimidating if you went with someone you knew?" He was going to continue rambling if Ollie didn't do something._

 _"I'd really like that," she interrupted, and Barry shot her a relieved look. "Thank you, I was…nervous about volunteering on my own," Ollie confessed, which made Barry just smile before digging back into his breakfast._

 _Ollie smiled a little down at her own bowl. Barry was a considerate kid and_ good _. She hadn't met too many people like him, and it just made her want to_ be _better. She didn't want to party so much, and not just because of Laurel but because Barry believed in her. Even Ollie's parents stopped believing she could do well in school or be socially responsible. Who would have thought a one-night stand could become a friend and positive influence in her life?_

 _Barry was so…so positive and inspiring. How he could be so positive all the time baffled her a little, especially given his past. Barry had covered the collection of newspaper clippings after her first visit, but she had seen the ones about his father, Henry Allen. The man had killed his own wife when Barry was eleven. That was why Barry had a foster father and sister. She closed her eyes and smiled a little sadly. When Barry was ready to talk about what happened that night, she'd listen and maybe she could help him like he was helping her?_

 _"Ollie?" Barry's concerned tone broke her thoughts._

 _She looked up at the kid and gave him a small smile. "Thank you for believing in me Barry and helping me," she whispered. "I haven't had too many people doing that lately."_

 _She heard him set the bowl down on the desk and then she felt the bed dip beside her. Barry set a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't—It's—" he cut himself off. He was failing to find words and so just squeezed her shoulder._

 _"Y-you know it's really not as selfless as you're making it seem," he began in his best attempt at casual as he pulled away from her and made a vaguely dismissive gesture. "I need to volunteer for this civic engagement class, so you know, two-birds-one stone." He coughed and shrugged awkwardly._

 _Ollie couldn't help but laugh as she glanced over at the kid. His posture relaxed and he began to smile again._

 _"Thanks Barry," Ollie said again. He just smiled more and hurried over to his desk again to finish his cereal. They then spent the rest of the morning doing more homework before Ollie had to find a girl on the next floor to let her into their bathroom so she could shower—she was starting to feel a little grungy._

 _When she got up there with one of Barry's spare towels and some flip-flops she had had the wisdom to pack, she got some looks. She had some travel shampoo and conditioner held against her chest along with the towel._

 _"Uh, hi?" Ollie addressed a girl as she was heading back from the bathroom to her dorm room. "I am staying with a guy friend on another floor and I was hoping someone could let me into the bathroom up here—I_ really _need a shower." The girl was staring at her with her mouth open in shock. "You know boy dorms are kind of gross and I just want to clean up."_

 _The girl eventually snapped to and nodded. "Uh, yeah. Let me just tell you the passcode for the bathroom." As the girl was telling Ollie the passcode she kept looking at Ollie in wonder. "I'm sorry but are you Olivia—"_

 _"Queen yeah," Ollie interjected and nodded casually as she gave the girl a smile. She was pretty cute and had that wide-eyed innocent look Ollie tended to fall for fast._

 _"Oh wow…uh…" the girl stumbled over her words._

 _"Well I ought to get to my shower. Thanks for telling me the passcode," Ollie said cheerfully. She was going to ask if it changed but she_ really _wanted a shower. She punched in the code on the lock and quickly entered the bathroom. Okay, showers were in a separate section from the stalls. Someone had put a boom-box in the bathroom and it was playing a top forty station. Ollie quickly stripped and wrapped the towel around her body. She set her clothes on a bench other girls had set their clothes on. She then made her way to an open shower stall and pulled the curtain behind her._

 _The dorm shower was a new experience, and it was_ small _. She did not envy anyone trying to shave in one of these. Still, she felt clean and refreshed afterwards. She then changed back into her clothes and began towel drying her hair as she went back to Barry's floor._

 _She knocked on the door, and Barry gave a little squawk. There was a clatter as something hit the built in closets. "Ah, one minute!" he called. Ollie chuckled and stood there in her sweats as she waited for Barry to likely get decent. When he opened the door, his hair was still wet and he was trying to get a shirt on but it got stuck._

 _Ollie entered the room and helped him pull the shirt down, but that only made him blush in embarrassment. Barry was just too cute sometimes. "Uh, how was the shower?" Barry asked as he tried to regain his composure._

 _Ollie shrugged. "Way too small but still worth it," she replied. She was wringing out her hair, and Barry laughed a little._

 _"Well, welcome to dorm life."_

 _They were silent for a moment as they did what they needed to get ready for the day. Ollie was dressed in her jeans again and a clean T-shirt when she sat back down on Barry's bed. "So what time do we need to be at the thing?"_

 _"Oh, four-ish." That was a few hours away. Ollie was getting a little stir crazy in the dorm._

 _"Can we go for a walk or something?" Ollie blurted out, and Barry blinked for a moment before nodding. "Good because I think if I do any more homework I will scream." Barry laughed but nodded his head._

 _"Yeah, I know what you mean." He rubbed the back of his head before pulling his hand away with a grimace and wiping his wet hand on his pants._

 _There was a brief pause as Ollie looked at Barry expectantly. "Oh yeah, uh there's a bike trail a few minutes from campus that will head in the direction of the church," he explained._

 _Ollie raised an eyebrow at that, and Barry looked confused for a minute. "Oh, right! The soup kitchen is held out of this local church," he explained, and Ollie nodded in understanding then. It was still pretty warm out so Ollie just put on her shoes and grabbed her purse while she waited for Barry to finish grabbing his things._

 _With a nod, they left the dorm and then Barry was leading her toward the bike trail. It was pretty nice and mostly enclosed by trees. They walked for a few minutes in silence as they enjoyed the warm weather. Then Ollie's phone buzzed. She pulled out the phone and looked down at the text and her clam shattered. Scoffing, she shoved the phone back into her pocket._

 _Barry was looking at her with an eyebrow raised. Ollie sighed. "Laurel's asking for outfit advice for her date with Mr. Abs tonight," Ollie drawled before her anger left her and she just felt worse. Barry brushed his shoulder against hers._

 _"Iris does that too." He sighed before he straightened. "'Hey Barry, do you think Jason will like this skirt?'" he said in a falsetto._

 _"'Hey Ollie, do you think I'm showing too much cleavage for a first date?'" Ollie mimicked Laurel's inflections._

 _"'Hey Barry, do you think a guy will like this top?'" Barry groaned after his last falsetto comment and rubbed his face._

 _"Oh I have you beat," Ollie began. "'Hey Ollie…'" Ollie mimicked the tone Laurel always used when she was trying to get something out of her. "'Let's go lingerie shopping. I need your advice.'"_

 _Barry hissed and gave her a sympathetic look. Ollie just nodded her head before sighing and shaking her head. "Being in an unrequited relationship sucks."_

 _"Yeah, but it's not like you can or_ should _be angry at her either—even though it sucks and hurts and just is…shitty." Barry sighed heavily. "Instead you just get angry at yourself because you_ just _can't be happy with someone else," Barry stated. He shook his head and sighed again._

 _Ollie exhaled in morbid amusement. "Yeah, and you don't want to tell her how much it hurts when she wants to talk about her boyfriend because then you'd have to tell her how you feel and then you could lose her friendship."_

 _"And it would be worse for her to_ not _be in your life than be in your life while with someone else," Barry added with yet another sigh; however, he brushed his shoulder against hers again._

 _"We're so fucked," Ollie said with a little laugh, but then she reached out and grabbed Barry's hand. They both exhaled derisively but squeezed each other's hands as if to support each other through it._

 _They walked for a moment longer in silence before Ollie broke it. "Sometimes I just want to let Laurel go but I don't know how."_

 _"Yeah…" Barry murmured. "I've never met someone who could get me to forget about Iris; maybe if I did I could move on?" Ollie could only nod her head and just squeezed Barry's hand again._

 _"It has to happen someday, right?" she asked, and Barry made an affirmative response. With those thoughts playing in their heads, they walked on for several more minutes. The day was really nice and the tunnel of trees made it feel like they were in a different world._

 _Ollie looked up and watched as the sun filtered down through the green canopy above them. A breeze stirred the top branches and the light filtering in became frantic for a moment. It was beautiful._

 _"I don't remember the last time I did something like this," she commented. "We don't have a lot of green spaces in Starling." It made her smile as she felt the sun hit her face for a moment before they passed under some more shade._

 _"Yeah?"_

 _"Yeah," Ollie repeated and brushed her shoulder against his while she continued to hold his hand. "It's really nice. I've always liked trees."_

 _Barry looked around like he was just noticing something. "It is kind of nice here." He flashed a smile back over at her. "You know…my dad," Barry began, and his smile took on a sad sort of edge, "he took me out to this cabin once. It was just in the middle of a forest. It was so weird being around all those trees, but it was kind of nice too. Like there was this quiet and-and…" He frowned as he tried to think how to articulate his thoughts. "I don't know." Barry rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "It was like we were the only humans and we were just_ there _in nature. It was kind of isolating but really welcoming too."_

 _"That kind of sounds nice," Ollie murmured._

 _"Yeah it was…" Barry agreed, and his smile started to falter before he perked up suddenly. "It was also the first time I saw a bug frozen in amber."_

 _"Oh?" Ollie felt a scientific ramble coming on, and she watched in amusement as Barry did not disappoint._

 _By the time they got to the church, they were a little early but it gave Ollie enough time to sign in and for them to be given the tour. Once they were given their individual assignments they got to work and Ollie began talking with the different people attending the dinner. She never knew so many people could be going through hard times or how thankful they were. It was…eye-opening and if felt_ good _to help even in this small way._

 _Ollie didn't see Barry again until they were sitting down to eat after the coordinators told them they could take a break. They were talking with a woman and her child as they ate, and Ollie just listened with rapt attention as the woman talked about her day. She had been to five temp jobs that day alone while her son was at kindergarten. They were going to stay the night at the battered women's shelter later. The strength of this mother was astounding to Ollie._

 _Ollie blinked and looked over at Barry in surprise. He was holding her hand and giving her an encouraging smile. Maybe he could tell how…guilty she felt? If businesses hadn't been closing, this woman wouldn't have been out of a stable job and-and—_

 _"You two are a sweet couple," the woman, Simone, commented. It took a moment for the comment to process for both of them; when it did, they retracted their hands like they were burned._

 _"W-we're not—no—just—not—" Barry began to sputter while Ollie said, "We're just friends." Simone gave them a knowing little smile._

 _"Of course baby girl, you two keep saying that," she said gently. Ollie felt her face flush, and she imagined she was matching Barry's shade at this point. The woman had just finished her meal and she thanked them before taking her and her son's dishes to the designated area while she held onto her son's hand._

 _After a moment, Barry spoke up. "She called you baby girl," he stated. He seemed amused by that._

 _"She called us couple too," Ollie retorted. That got Barry blushing, and now Ollie felt like teasing him. "Beside you're the one who could pass for high schooler."_

 _"Hey!" Barry protested, but before they could devolve into a childish argument, they were summoned back to help._

 _It was getting dark by the time they were walking back, but neither of them seemed to mind. They took the busy streets instead of the bike trail as a precaution though._

 _"This was really nice. I'm glad you offered this," Ollie said. Barry just smiled as he folded his arms behind his head._

 _"I_ am _full of good ideas," he commented almost cockily._

 _Ollie snorted and playfully shoved her shoulder against his torso. Barry stumbled but began laughing. They walked in this comradery for several minutes before Barry broke the silence, "We should do this again."_

 _"Yeah, definitely."_

 _It was silent for a moment longer._

 _"Next weekend I have a family dinner Friday night, but we could hang out the rest of the weekend maybe?" Barry suggested this almost casually, and Ollie nodded her head._

 _"Sure, but aren't you going to spend the weekend with them?" Ollie asked; she wasn't going to complain—any chance to keep away from the party scene right now she'd take._

 _Barry sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Iris will probably want to talk about her boyfriend and then want me to go shopping or something with her."_

 _"Will—was it Joe?" Ollie asked for clarification. Barry nodded, and Ollie continued, "Well, will Joe be okay with you not staying the full weekend?"_

 _"He's not my dad," Barry retorted. Ollie gave him a skeptical look and Barry winced. "Okay he kind of is but he also knows how I feel about Iris and—"_

 _"What?!" Ollie exclaimed. This was news to Ollie. "He knows and he's cool with it?" Her dad would totally not have been cool if someone like a brother to her had a crush on her._

 _Barry shifted a little in discomfort. "I think it's like that saying, the evil you know over the evil you don't." Ollie laughed a little at that, and Barry smiled. "Besides, I think there are times he'd_ prefer _I was dating Iris over these jerks she's been with." He sighed. "But Joe also wishes I'd get over Iris and just…_ live _."_

 _"Wise words," Ollie murmured, and Barry smiled a little._

 _"We call them Joe-isms," Barry explained. Ollie began laughing, and Barry joined. By the time the two of them went to bed, Ollie felt lighter and happier than she had been in a long time._

…

Ollie entered the A.R.G.U.S. facility with two guards behind her. Waller was waiting for her, and Ollie quickly pulled the flash drive out of her dress top. She handed it to the woman and looked at her expectantly.

Waller nodded to the guards behind her, and they began escorting Ollie through the facility. Her heels clacked against the metal floor. She was then brought to a door with a window in it. She could see a projector flashing against one of the sterile white walls in the room, but she couldn't see what the images were. She could also hear voices but she couldn't make out the words.

The guards opened the door, and Ollie saw William staring up at the projections while—was that Barry's voice!? She stared at the projector which showed Barry talking but the voice coming from the speakers wasn't speaking English and didn't match his lip movement (not that they could see that very well). Was that…Russian? But it was Barry's voice? Ollie shot the guards a confused and angry look, but they only gestured for her to enter the room.

Ollie did so and it drew William's attention.

"Kaasan!" Akio called Tatsu that—of course they were teaching William Japanese while they had lived together. Ollie kicked off her heels and quickly rushed to kneel next to her toddler. She picked him up in her arms and hugged him. She then watched the projector. Was this…was this live feeds? Why were there camera's in Barry's apartment? _Was_ that Barry's apartment? William began to babble in several languages as she kept watching the projected images with a sinking feeling.

She heard Waller's heels clack against the floor behind her, and Ollie quickly turned around and stood. "What is this?" she asked the woman. Her tone startled William, and he quieted.

Waller raised an eyebrow before giving a self-satisfied smile. " _That_ Olivia," she gestured to the screen, "is William's language teacher. We figured the boy deserves to know who his family is—even if he might not ever get to meet them."

"You…" Ollie's attention changed as she heard a new voice, her mother's voice speaking in English.

"Granma!" William inarticulately cried at the change in video feed.

Ollie sank down against the back wall with William in her lap. Together, they watched the video feed of her mother going about her day. It was so painful to see. God she missed her family.

"Maybe you will get to be with them again, Olivia," Waller commented, and Ollie glared at her.

"When?" Ollie shot back. "You've made it clear we're never going leave."

Waller's smile fell and she sighed.

"I have one last operation for you, but you will not like where it brings you."

"Oh?" Ollie snapped.

"Your knowledge of Lian Yu has become valuable. I do not know how long this assignment will last, but you can consider your service to A.R.G.U.S. fulfilled once you complete this mission."

Ollie held William closer. "Will it be dangerous for him?"

"Yes," Waller stated. "He will have to stay here and continue his education. Should you die while on this mission, he will become a ward of one of my operatives," Waller explained. Ollie scoffed, and Waller sighed again. "You've been a valuable asset Olivia, and after this mission A.R.G.U.S. will send you and your son wherever you wish. Perhaps it will be time for Olivia Queen to return from the dead?"

"Why the change of heart?" Ollie asked as she glared slightly at the woman.

Waller made an amused noise. "Haven't you heard Olivia, I don't have a heart." Ollie snorted at that, but Waller sobered. "No, we believe we run the risk of exposure if you continue to be in the field—even dead you still are recognizable in certain parts of the world," Waller explained. Ollie nodded slightly, and Waller continued on, "We also believe you may become a better asset to us within Queen Consolidated."

Ollie scoffed and shook her head. "Why does A.R.G.U.S. need a man in a Fortune 500 company?"

Waller just smiled that smile of hers and turned around to leave. "Survive Lian Yu and perhaps you'll learn," she added over her shoulder. Then the clacking of her heels could be heard down the hallway.

Ollie shook her head and looked down at William. He was babbling up at her and reaching for her face. She kissed his forehead.

One of the guards by the door spoke up, "Waller has given you two weeks to be with your son before you are deployed." Small mercies.

"Did you hear that William?" she asked the little boy, and he smiled as he chewed on his fingers. She pressed a kiss to his check and watched as her family and Barry's family were put onto the projector and spoke in different languages. Eventually the projector turned off and they were left in the room. William began to waddle over to a stuffed dinosaur Ollie had gotten after a mission and had asked an operative to give him. In fact, all the toys in the room were ones she got for William after missions.

She picked up a teddy bear and began to make it walk over to William. He gave a delighted cry and babbled something to her. She thought she understood a few words in Cantonese. She responded back as best she could in the language. William was just thrilled. How could he be so happy in this world? He was just like Barry.

Ollie closed her eyes. She could never imagine Barry going through this but if he did…would he still be happy and positive? She had to believe he would. _Stay positive,_ she told herself. She had to stay positive because the cynical thing she'd otherwise become should never be around her baby _._

"I love you so much William," she whispered to the toddler who just smiled and reached his chubby fingers out toward her. Ollie pulled him to her chest and just rocked him for a moment. He hugged her back and babbled some more.

One more mission and they could go back to Starling City, and she could fulfill her promise to her father.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** So this is very slice-of-life-ish. I hope you all enjoy it, and the newest seasons are giving me all sorts of ideas for this story way further down the road. Eventually it will be less in the past and more in the present, but I need to set up how things have changed before diving straight in. Thank you for reading, if anyone has read this ~ much love, depressedchildren


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Arrow_ or _Flash._ They are property of Detective Comics and the CW. I gain no profit by writing this fictional story.

 **Summary:** One night in 1984 could have gone a number of ways with far reaching consequences. While time sets most things, the ancestors of time travelers are the ones with true freewill. Poor Eobard Thawne, his ancestors are especially bent on free-will and heroics; if only they'd stop fucking with the timeline _he_ knew. Eobard will just have to wait for a chance to make sure _his_ timeline happens, no matter how free-willed his ancestors were.

 **A/N:** I apologize for updating late. There will be one more reminiscing chapter after this before we begin Season 1 of Arrow. I am struggling with how to write the more...intimate moments. Starting out on I would mimic the writing of others and make things explicit, but that is not my style nor the focus of this fic. Yes there is romance but its not about sex, its about relationships. I am trying to figure out how authors in different books so eloquently write two sentences that cover the breadth of the moment without being unnecessarily wordy or descriptive. I guess, be forward, intimate scenes will be written with some description but mostly vaguely and implied until I can figure out how to balance things. Thank you for reading, much love ~ depressed children

* * *

 **Chapter 3:** Maybe Something More

* * *

 **2010**

Barry couldn't believe he agreed to go out with his friends. Sure he was twenty-one, but he had a chem lab the next morning and he needed to be awake for it. Still… Barry tried to move with the energetic music but he had a feeling he was getting in someone's way—he was too drunk to care one way or another.

One of his friends grabbed his arm and he stumbled away from the dancefloor with his friend. They were laughing and telling him something but he couldn't hear clearly over the music. Something about a girl checking him out? What?! They pointed off to the side, and Barry saw a girl with a beanie watching him before turning away quickly.

He was then unceremoniously shoved in the girl's direction. Laughing, he stumbled into the bar counter. "Hi!" he shouted, and the girl fidgeted. "I'm Barry," he introduced himself.

"Sian," she returned the introduction in an equally loud voice.

Barry was always awkward after this part, and Sian seemed to be pretty awkward too. "You go to school here?" he asked over the bass.

"Yeah!"

"Cool, me too!" Barry just smiled and swayed where he stood. The bartender came over and Barry smiled. "Can I get a shot of something; I don't care what," he requested. The bartender shook his head and quickly got a shot glass out and filled it with tequila. Eh…maybe he _should_ have been more specific. Barry quickly paid for the drink and shot it back. Sian apparently also ordered a shot and she had just finished knocking it back. She was coughing, so Barry quickly patted her on the back.

"T-Thanks!" she said coughing still.

"No problem!" Barry felt more than buzzed. "Hey, you wanna dance?!" he asked over the music. The girl fidgeted but nodded. "Okay, just fair warning, I don't really know how to dance," Barry confessed with a self-depreciating laugh.

The girl laughed too but still followed him out to the packed dance floor. They danced next to each other for a while with the energetic songs playing—he was mostly jumping and shaking like a spaz, but Barry was _way_ too drunk to care. Sian was laughing at him but joined him in his awkward dancing. After several more songs, there was a sudden slow one, and Barry moved closer. He set his hands on her hips and quickly asked if it was okay. She blushed but nodded.

By the end of the song Barry was reaching down to kiss Sian, and she let him. At some point they moved off the dance floor and continued making out until Sian's friends pulled her away and said they were going to another bar. Barry just shrugged and went to find his friends. They tried to give him high-fives, but he just ignored that and continued to dance like the uncoordinated person he was. He was just having fun for once. He hadn't had genuine fun since he was dating Ollie, so he was going to savor this.

…

 _Barry pushed his food around as Iris told them about her latest date. This was why he didn't really want to go home. The noodle dish was good, one of Grandma West's recipes. Joe gave him a pitying look but quickly smiled as Iris looked at him while relating how her date had even opened the car door for her—what a gentleman. Barry refrained from rolling his eyes. He was happy for Iris, but it just stung when she talked about her boyfriends._

 _Barry jumped when he felt his phone buzz. He quickly pulled it out of his pocket and flipped open the screen. Ollie:_ At grocery store. They have snowballs. Do you remember those? _Yes he did! He smiled and quickly typed his response and hit send. A few seconds later he got a response:_ I'm only getting a few because of nostalgia. _A few more seconds passed and then there was another buzz:_ Any requests? _Barry chuckled and quickly typed his request for healthy snacks too, not just nostalgia cavity inducing ones. He set his phone down and continued eating; he belated realized he was still smiling and Iris had stopped talking._

 _He looked up with some noodles hanging out of his mouth. He quickly chewed and swallowed. "What?" he asked as Joe and Iris kept staring at him. His phone buzzed again and his attention was diverted._

Do you wanna try cooking? _For real? Ollie wanted to cook? Barry believed there were pans and stuff they could borrow from the front desk, so why not. He typed his response and got a smiley face back and then the words:_ This is gonna be an awesome disaster. _He laughed a little and replied an affirmative before closing the phone again._

 _"Okay…Is it just me or is Barry acting like you when you have a boyfriend," Joe asked Iris slowly. Barry blinked and blushed._

 _"What? No!"_

 _Iris looked just as perturbed as Joe, and leaned toward her father while still looking at Barry. "He is, Dad," she replied conspiratorially._

 _"Who you texting Bar?" Joe asked, and Barry gave a disbelieving look._

 _"Iris texts at the table all the time, but you never ask who she's texting."_

 _"Yeah Barry, but you never text this much at the table or laugh or smile when texting back," Iris retorted. She was now getting excited. "Oh my god, who is she!?"_

 _"T-there is no she!" Barry defended, but his voice was getting pretty high pitched and his face felt on fire. Joe and Iris gave him skeptical looks. "I-I mean, like, not how you're implying."_

 _"But there_ is _a she?" Joe asked for confirmation, and Barry just looked elsewhere._

 _"Oh my god, Bar!" Iris exclaimed as she clapped her hands together. "Who is she, when did you two start dating?"_

 _"We're not dating!" he protested, but Iris just got that smile on her face that said she believed otherwise and she was going to tease him endlessly about it._

 _His phone buzzed, and he immediately picked it up but regretted his quickness as Joe and Iris gave him knowing looks. He blushed and looked at the text._ Any allergies _. He quickly gave his response and set the phone down._

 _"So…" Joe began, "Who is she? Are you two planning a date? Is that why you aren't staying the weekend?" Barry just blushed and looked elsewhere._

 _"We're not dating," he insisted, while Iris made skeptical noise, and Joe just raised an eyebrow in challenge. "We're hanging out this weekend."_

 _"The_ whole _weekend?" Iris asked almost scandalized, and Joe's eyebrows shot up toward his hair line._

 _Barry blushed and wondered what excuse he could make to leave the situation; however, Joe spoke up a little concerned. "Barry, she's not staying_ with _you, is she?" Barry tried to keep his composure, but Iris' gasp said he failed. "I…don't know what to say Bar. I…" Joe sighed heavily and ran a hand over his head. Barry covered his face in his hands._

 _"She doesn't go to school here so she stays at my dorm—"_

 _"You two have done this before?!" Iris exclaimed with her hands pressed flat against the table. "Barry!" she half-admonished. Iris looked impressed now. Barry groaned into his hands._

 _"It's not like that!" he was starting to whine now. "We're just friends."_

 _"Who are staying in a dorm room all weekend together," Joe pointed out._

 _"Yeah! Studying and watching movies," Barry insisted. Iris' excitement settled down and she looked less impressed._

 _However, Joe looked at him for a long moment. "You're telling me you haven't"—he rolled his hands in a vague motion—"with this girl?" Not that he could remember. Barry just shook his head and didn't meet Joe's eyes._

 _"Whoa!" Iris held her hands out as if to settle things down, "You…with a girl?! And you're 'just friends' now? Come on Barry, don't be mean to the girl!"_

 _"Iris," Joe began to chide before he turned onto Barry. "Did you use protection?" Barry wanted this conversation to be done forever ago._

 _"I don't remember, Joe!" Barry blurted and instantly regretted letting his embarrassment and anger get the better of him._

 _"How don't you remember?" Joe's tone said he had a feeling he knew why, and Iris just remained silent as she sat back in her chair. Barry covered his face with both hands. "Barry?" Joe was using_ that _tone now._

 _Barry sank back in his chair. "I went to a frat party with other people on my floor, okay?" He was giving up on keeping that secret hidden._

 _"Barry!" Joe began to reprimand while Iris looked genuinely surprised._

 _"Trust me Joe, I am_ sooo _not going to drink ever again." Joe was just shaking his head, and Iris just stared at her plate._

 _"So…did you both agree to be just friends?" Iris asked suddenly after a moment._

 _"Iris!" Joe chided while Barry groaned and covered his face again._

 _"What?" she protested. "What if she doesn't want to be just friends?" Iris then added, as if she just remembered something, "Does_ she _remember?"_

 _Barry shook his head, but kept his hands over his face._

 _"So how do you know you two—"_

 _"Iris," Joe warned again, while Barry sent her a deadpan look before covering his face again._

 _"It was a valid point," she grumbled, and there was blessed silence for a moment. However, Iris made sure it was short lived. "So she really just wants to be friends? How did that come about?"_

 _Barry sighed and dropped his hands beside his body. "Ollie just wants to be friends. She's really in love with her best friend, but_ she'll _never love Ollie like she loves her so…" he sighed again but saw understanding dawn on Joe's face._

 _Iris however raised her eyebrows. "She's gay?"_

 _"Pan," Barry corrected, and Iris mouthed 'damn.'_

 _Barry straightened in his chair after a moment. "Look, we really are just friends, and she's spending the weekends with me so she doesn't go off to parties with her best friend Tommy."_

 _"What, is he forcing her?" Iris asked skeptically._

 _"No, but she doesn't want to party as much and she wants to take school more seriously so…" Barry shrugged, "I'm helping her."_

 _"Where's this Ollie from?" Joe asked after a moment._

 _"Starling," he replied. Now that the hostility was gone, Barry felt a little more comfortable. Iris, however, slammed her hands down on the table and stood up._

 _"Whoa! Ollie and Tommy from Starling City? Are you shitting me Barry?!"_

 _"Iris," Joe began to reprimand, but Iris steamrolled on._

 _"Barry are you talking about Olivia Queen? Party-girl billionaire who has dated a dozen male_ and _female models?" Barry's mouth fell open and he blinked several times. She was from_ those _Queens? No wonder why she was so casual about covering the bills—he ignored the dating models part for his own sanity._

 _Iris stared at him in disbelief, "You didn't know who she was did you? Did she tell you her name was Queen?"_

 _"I thought it was a common name?" Barry tried, and Iris began laughing as she sat back down._

 _"Oh Barry!" She was shaking her head now. "I can't believe you sometimes."_

 _"Damn…" was all Joe said as he sat back in his chair a blinked a few times. "Well, let's hope you used protection." He frowned and added, "Maybe you should get tested before you go back to school."_

 _Barry covered his face again. "Joe!" he whined._

 _"Dad has a point Barry," Iris added, and he groaned. She laughed a little, and eventually Barry got over his mortification._

 _He was finally eating again when Iris spoke up. "So what's she like? She can't be as bad as the tabloids say or you wouldn't be hanging out with her."_

 _Barry swallowed his food before speaking. "She's pretty fun and she has a really good heart. We volunteered at a soup kitchen last weekend and I'm pretty sure she fell in love with it. We made plans to volunteer again Sunday."_

 _Joe looked impressed, and Iris raised an eyebrow. "Wow," Iris muttered. "So, what does 'Ollie' like? Same things as you?" She looked skeptical there._

 _"Not really—I mean we haven't talked a ton about interests" Barry shrugged and moved his food around. "We've mostly done homework together," he added when he realized his words could be misconstrued._

 _Barry shrugged again after a moment and added, "I guess we can talk about sports teams for a good while, and she listens to me talk about scientific discoveries and advances. We've also been making our way through my Sci-fi collection."_

 _"Hey, she'll listen to you speak science; that's a plus in my book," Iris cheered, and Barry blushed a little._

 _"Iris…" Barry groaned. She was going to try to convince him to give Ollie a shot, but they weren't like that._

 _"Oh come on Barry," Iris began, "normally a girl like that would be out of your league but she's hanging out with you." Barry winced at that comment while Joe gave Iris a look. She realized her blunder and grimaced apologetically. "Barry, I didn't mean it like—"_

 _"It's okay Iris." He quickly continued eating so he wouldn't have to talk more. Iris was looking guiltily down at her plate. Dinner proceeded awkwardly after that, then Iris offered to wash the dishes, perhaps still feeling bad for her earlier comment._

 _Joe picked up his beer, moved over to the living room, and gestured Barry to join him. Great, was this going to be_ the _talk again? Barry reluctantly sat down at the end of the couch closest to Joe's chair._

 _"Look Bar," he began as he turned on the TV. Some old sci-fi movie began to play. "Maybe you shouldn't push Ollie away from you." Barry looked over at Joe quickly with his brow furrowed. What did he mean by that? Joe gave him a deadpan look and said, "Don't deny it Barry, you push girls who like you away. Remember that girl back in 9_ _th_ _grade you had that one project with?" Vaguely… Barry frowned a little more but nodded. "She had a crush on you, son, but you pushed her away because she wasn't…you know."_

 _Barry shifted and sunk into the couch as Joe continued speaking, "You push girls away Barry, and you shouldn't do that with Ollie. It sounds like you both are helping each other with your…unrequited situations. Maybe it would be good to be more than just friends?"_

 _Barry didn't say anything, and Joe just took a sip of his beer. The man then hummed and added, "I might not like what I've heard about her in the tabloids, but you are a good judge of character—if you think she's good then she's good and I approve. Perhaps instead of hurting yourselves because you aren't with the women you want to be with, maybe you two should see where things go?_

 _"I mean…" Joe continued with a shrug, "if a text from the girl can make you smile that much even though Iris is talking about her recent boyfriend, maybe there's something there?"_

 _Barry bit his lip. "I don't know Joe…"_

 _The man shrugged again. "Well, maybe you two should give it a try."_

 _Maybe? It was hard to think he could really_ be _with anyone when he loved Iris so much, but perhaps Joe had a point. He should_ try _to forget about Iris. Before Barry could contemplate things more, his phone buzzed._

 _He picked it up and realized Ollie was calling him. He forced down a blush when Joe gave him a knowing smile. Barry answered, "Hey Ollie, what's up?"_

"So I told Tommy I couldn't go out tonight because I had to get my homework done—he didn't buy it by the way, so I was going to send him pictures as proof, right?" _Barry hummed and waited for Ollie to ask him her question._ "So then I get started on it right, and I realize, I don't know what the hell I'm doing." _He laughed a little._

 _"Okay, what's your question? Are we on math, biology, or chem homework?"_

"Math," _Ollie said with a sigh._

 _"Okay, what's the question?" So he coached her through the homework with Joe smiling at him the whole time and giving him a little encouraging look. It was kind of embarrassing._

…

Barry looked at his classmates as he finished his presentation. It was a little weird being the _only_ white, straight male in the classroom. Still, his primarily female peers began bringing up their points and questions from his presentation. As they moved onto a conversation about when they became aware of their race and gender, he sat down in the circle of desks with everyone else. One student began relating a story about how she had first realized gender was restrictive when she wasn't allowed to roughhouse with the neighborhood kids. Another student brought up the moment she became aware of her own race and what it meant.

Several more students shared before Barry brought his hand up after a moment. "I guess I became more aware of race after going to live with my foster family. Um…My foster dad, Joe, he used to pick me up from school before Iris because she had Girl Scout meetings right away after school. I had just started school again after…um…" he shook his head—he didn't want to talk about the circumstances, "I started living with them, and I didn't understand why the people watching pick-up wouldn't let me join Joe in the car."

Barry laughed a little and shook his head. "I mean, he's a cop but the ladies at pick-up didn't see his shield and just assumed this black man was picking up a little white kid. Then there were times at the precinct where things just felt…weird? I realized Joe was treated differently than the other detectives and him taking me in after…everything…" Barry shook his head, "Some people didn't like it for some reason." Barry rubbed his face. "I'm not being articulate…"

He sunk a little in his chair but someone else spoke up and related a story of their father who was also in law enforcement and a person of color. Dr. Yamanaka redirected the stories back to the theory before the next student shared their experience.

The conversation circled back to gender again, and Barry felt the teacher looking at him like she was hoping he'd share. What the hell; he may as well share. Barry raised his hand up and began speaking. "Um…I remember back before…before I moved in with Joe and Iris, um…" he closed his eyes and took a steadying breath. "I used to get beat up by these kids. I would come home and…my mom never liked the fighting, but she'd tell my dad I won for some reason and he'd be proud of that." Barry laughed a little before adding, "I guess that told me guys should be tough and win fights—getting beat up isn't what boys should do."

"Exactly," Dr. Yamanaka spoke up, "regardless of gender, one's parents, school, media, it all enforces problematic gender and race stereotypes." The southern twang to her voice always made Barry smile a little. After class ended, Barry moved over to the professor.

"Dr. Yamanaka?" he called. The woman looked up at him with her eyebrow raised. "Um…I found our last reading really fascinating, and I was wondering if you could recommend some more texts." He fidgeted in place for a moment, "Especially readings about performativity?"

"You'll want Judith Butler then Barry, but why don't you stop in during office hours and I can give you some more readings?" She paused for a moment, "What was your major again?"

"Ah," Barry laughed a little before confessing, "Forensics."

"This is your second Women's Studies class, isn't it? Are you hoping to minor?"

"I didn't plan on it," he shrugged and then looked down at the ground. "I don't know, these classes just make me think of a friend I lost. I imagine she would have liked learning these things." He missed Ollie.

"Well, Barry, I'm sure your friend would be proud of you taking these classes for her."

Barry smiled a little sadly and nodded.

"Thank you for your time Dr. Yamanaka." He gave another smile and started to leave the classroom when he bumped into a student entering the room. The girl had a beanie on her head.

"Oh! Whoa, sorry…Sian?" He thought he recognized her. The girl blushed brightly and nodded a little as she looked down at the carpet.

"H-hi Barry, right?" He nodded and moved to the side so Dr. Yamanaka could pass by.

"You're taking a Woman's Studies class?" Sian asked in surprise, and Barry nodded while rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah, 'Women of Color in America.'"

Sian perked up. "I'm minoring in women's studies but majoring in social work. Is WS 304 good so far?"

"Yeah definitely. The readings are really informative, especially the one about domestic workers." Barry shoved his hands in his pockets and added, "Dr. Yamanaka really helps you understand the theory too, though I like Dr. Jefferson's approach a little more," Barry confessed.

"Oh? What class did you take with her?" Sian adjusted the strap of her backpack.

"Just the intro class," Barry shrugged.

Sian raised her eyebrows. "And you're taking a 300 level class?"

"Well, I'm a senior, and it was the only class that fit my schedule. I have labs most days so…" he shook his head.

"Labs? What's your major?" Sian asked. The classroom was starting to fill up but they kept talking by the door.

"Forensics," Barry admitted. Sian looked at him surprised again, and he laughed a little. "I like the classes in Women's Studies—it's different."

"Yeah…" Sian added disbelievingly.

Barry pulled out his phone and looked at the time before grimacing. "Ah, I have to get across campus for class." Sian deflated a little at that. "Um…but"—Barry was starting to walk out the door backwards—"why don't we get coffee or something?"

"Yeah, uh…we can talk when you get out of class next week," Sian agreed, and Barry flashed her a smile before hurrying down the hall while she entered the classroom. He might have had a bounce to his step as he made his way over to the main science building.

…

 _Barry had Joe drive him to the train station so they could pick up Ollie. He warned her Joe was going to bring them to campus, but he was still a little nervous. When they pulled up outside the station, Ollie was waiting for him. He quickly opened the doors to the car and hurried over to her. She was carrying a backpack, a small duffle bag, and a reusable grocery bag._

 _"Hey Barry" she greeted as he took her bags._

 _"Hey Ollie, I'm sorry if you were waiting long."_

 _"Nope, not at all." He had a sinking feeling that was a lie, but she was smiling, so he just went with it. Barry was about to sit in the back when Ollie protested._

 _"Are you sure?" he asked slowly, and she nodded her head. Barry looked back at Joe who just shrugged. Barry reluctantly agreed and got into the front seat._

 _As Joe began to pull out of the loading zone, Ollie spoke up. "Hi, you must be Joe. I'm Olivia Queen."_

 _"So I've heard," he replied almost stiltedly, and Barry looked over at him with wide eyes. What the hell? He said he'd be cool if they were together. Ollie wasn't perturbed, so she just settled in the back of the car._

 _"So you're a detective?" she asked conversationally._

 _"Yes," Joe replied._

 _"Cool." Ollie paused for a moment, "You're probably worried I'll corrupt Barry or something right? Well don't worry, we're friends and there won't be any partying, I promise." Barry could only blush._

 _Joe looked surprised, and Ollie chuckled a little. "My best friend's dad is a detective; I've gotten the disapproving silence a_ lot _." Well…wow._

 _"Okay, well," Joe coughed a little. "If you two decide to not be_ just _friends, be smart and safe." Barry looked away while blushing and caught Ollie blushing through the side mirror._

 _"Ahh, duly noted, sir…" Ollie mumbled. It was an awkward silence after that._

 _When Joe finally dropped them off at the dorm, they practically fled the car. But by the time they were outside Barry's dorm room, they were laughing in embarrassment._

 _"Oh my god!"_

 _"I am so sorry!" Barry exclaimed while laughing and hiding his face. Did that really just happen? He'd seen Joe do that with Iris' boyfriends, but for him to do that in defense for Barry—god it was mortifying!_

 _"He is such an over-protective father," Ollie gasped out as Barry fumbled with his keys._

 _"He is!" Barry agreed—at least to Iris… He was just Barry's guardian…_

 _Ollie shook her head as Barry finally opened the door. "My dad gave me the same lecture as I was packing. He also made me pack condoms." Barry tripped over his feet as he was walking through the door and had to catch himself on the desk._

 _Ollie set her bags down while Barry tried to compose himself. "We're just friends. Is that so hard to believe?" he asked as calmly as he could, but his face was still bright red._

 _"I think it is Barry," Ollie commented as she started to pull out the things that would need to be refrigerated. They were already marked with_ QUEEN _. "Although…" Ollie began as she waved a stick of butter at him, "everyone seems to think we're a couple—your floor-mates included."_

 _"So what? We should try to be couple?" Barry asked as he leaned back against the desk. He was blushing still and his stomach felt like it was tied in knots. Ollie hummed and sat back on the bed._

 _"Raisa, she was my nanny, uh…" Ollie bit her lip as she gathered her thoughts. "She said something as I was asking her for easy recipes…"_

 _Barry frowned, though the knots in his stomach seemed to be moving now and were making him want to fidget. What was Ollie getting at?_

 _"Yeah?" Barry asked, though he thought his voice sounded a little weird._

 _"Raisa said I was different…she said I was happier. She also asked if I had seen Laurel at all that week and I hadn't but I was still happy…" Ollie looked off to the side, and Barry curled his hands around the edge of the desk to ground himself. Ollie exhaled in amusement and added, "She also said a girl's in love if she's willing to cook for someone else."_

 _Barry looked down at the ground and thought he could hear his heart beat, but it was probably just his blood pounding in his head. He swallowed a little difficultly and he heard Ollie picking through the grocery bag._

 _"It was an exaggeration, Barry, don't worry. We barely know each other." Somehow that got him to calm down. He wanted to laugh or do something to expel his lingering discomfort, but he was reminded of what Joe had said._

 _"Your nanny has a point though…" he murmured, and Ollie looked up at him with her eyebrow raised. Barry licked his lips as he tried to think of how to phrase this. "When you texted me, Iris had been going on and on about her boyfriend, but it didn't bother me as much as it usually does."_

 _Ollie hummed. "Well…maybe we should try?"_

 _Barry nodded slowly but couldn't look Ollie in the eye. That was when he noticed she had a half dozen egg carton, a stick of butter, and a small container of mushrooms in her arms._

 _"Uh Barry? A little help?" she asked._

 _Barry blinked and blushed as he hurried over to the bag. There was another half-gallon of almond milk, a bag of cheese, and some ham to bring to the fridge. He remembered to grab his keys, and they were soon on their way to the kitchen. With the items refrigerated, they went back to the room._

 _When they returned, Barry stood awkwardly in his room, and Ollie began to laugh. "Barry, relax. Let's just do what we've been doing, okay? We don't need to force anything."_

 _Barry blushed brighter but nodded, "R-right."_

 _"You are too cute," she exclaimed with a laugh as she pulled her backpack onto her lap. Barry gave her a half-hearted glare, but the comment got him to start acting normally again. The rest of the afternoon passed with them doing homework. Ollie asked several questions as she got to the review sections._

 _Eventually Barry needed a break before his brain melted. He got up, stretched, and then moved to see what Ollie was doing; she hadn't asked him a question for a while now, so he was curious how she was doing. "The Odyssey?" he read the spine of the book, and Ollie looked up._

 _"Yeah. It's not too bad." Ollie shrugged and put a bookmark in the page. "Need a study break?" she asked, and Barry nodded._

 _"Definitely. Calculus is making my brain feel like soup." He sighed as he sat at the edge of the bed and then laid back._

 _Ollie winced. "I am so glad I don't have to take that," she confessed. Barry smiled and just laid there for a while as his back relaxed after having sat hunched in his chair for so long._

 _He heard some rustling and then the familiar sound of cereal shaking in a container. He propped himself up and saw the box of Coco Puffs Ollie had brought with her._

 _"Yes!" He sat up toward the head of the bed while Ollie moved to the end of the bed. She opened the box and then opened the bag within. She grabbed a handful before passing the box to Barry._

 _She readied the first puff, and Barry opened his mouth. He caught the piece of cereal and raised is fist into the air. Ollie laughed and then opened her mouth to catch the puff he threw. After a few more throws, they fell into a rhythm._

 _"So…" Ollie began after chewing, "you finally realized I'm Olivia Queen?" She then gave him a skeptical look. "How did you_ not _know before?" she asked incredulously while throwing the next puff. Barry blushed and caught the piece; yeah, he might have been acting a little strange._

 _"I thought it was a common name?" he tried, and Ollie couldn't help but laugh. He kicked her lightly in the foot before crossing his legs again. Ollie just laughed more, and he threw a puff at her, but she managed to catch it. She then stuck her tongue out at him._

 _"Well it doesn't matter anyways," Barry defended himself, and Ollie raised an eyebrow. "You're you—not your family or the tabloid rumors." Ollie paused in throwing the next piece of cereal. "What?" Barry asked; although, he needed to work on not sounding defensive._

 _"Keep saying nice things like that, and I will kiss you," Ollie warned. Barry blushed bright red at the sort of threat, and Ollie took that moment to throw the puff. He missed it, and she pumped her fist in the air. "Score!"_

 _"Y-You distracted me!" Ollie just stuck her tongue out at him. He threw a puff at her and it hit her nose. "Score," he shot back. Ollie began to laugh and he quickly joined her._

 _They picked up their game again after another moment. "So you know about Joe and Iris. Who's your family?" Barry asked as he readied his next throw._

 _Ollie caught the piece of cereal. "Well, you know I have a baby sister, Thea. She's about ten years younger than me. We call her Speedy." She threw the next piece of cereal at him, and he caught it. "I feel like we're always chasing after her," Ollie explained the nickname. Barry smiled a little and threw the next puff. Ollie caught it, and ate it before going on. "Then there's my mom and dad. I'm closer with my mom than dad. He just gets…" Ollie sighed and threw the next puff at Barry. "I don't know, I feel like he's disappointed in me a lot."_

 _"Why do you say that?" Barry asked. He paused in the game, and Ollie pulled her knees up to her chest._

 _"He's stopped trying to keep me in the house. It's like he doesn't care if I go out and party anymore. I've been drinking and partying since I was fifteen, but…" Ollie shook her head. "I don't know…I just sometimes wish he'd get angry about that. All he worries about is me getting knocked up." She sighed and looked down at the sheets._

 _"Damn…" Barry whispered._

 _Ollie gave a little smile. "I mean, my dad loves me—I can tell. It's just, like, I wish he'd sometimes be over-protective of me again, like he is of Thea. I wish I wasn't such a disappointment to him."_

 _Barry nodded slowly and pulled his own knees up to his chest. "But you aren't partying as much and you're taking school seriously. He'll realize this soon." Barry tried to give her an encouraging smile and even nudged her leg with his foot._

 _"Thanks Barry," Ollie whispered. It was quiet for a moment, and Barry could feel her preparing to ask a question—a question he didn't have to guess about._

 _Barry sighed heavily and set his chin against his knees. "My dad's in prison, and he doesn't want me to visit because he's ashamed or something."_

 _"Barry…" Ollie began, and Barry flashed her a weak smile._

 _"I guess you should probably know my dad's in prison because everyone thinks he murdered my mom. He didn't," Barry rushed to reassure._

 _"He didn't?" Ollie repeated._

 _Barry closed his eyes. "Everyone says I made stuff up to cope with what happened, but I_ know _what I saw—no matter how impossible it was."_

 _Ollie waited for him to talk again, and he took a deep breath. After a moment he continued his story, "I came down stairs because I heard this noise and my mom screaming. There was lightning circling the room, my mom in the middle of the storm. I could swear there was a man in the lightning, but…" Barry shook his head. "Suddenly I was a mile from my house and when I finally got back, the police had already taped the area._

 _"The jury was convinced in thirty minutes, but I just_ know _something impossible was in that room and it killed my mom." He made sure to look Ollie in the eyes as he said that so she could read his seriousness._

 _Perhaps his message came across because Ollie crawled over to him and sat down beside him. She brushed her shoulder against his and then leaned her head on his shoulder while she set her free hand on his free hand (they both still had cereal in their other hands). She didn't say anything, perhaps it was too much or she didn't know_ what _to think._

 _The silence lasted for a while longer, and then Ollie squeezed his hand. "I'm sure if you keep up with the science stuff you'll figure out the impossible things," she murmured. He smiled a little at that and set his own head against hers. They remained there for a while longer._

 _This was kind of nice… He couldn't remember the last time he just sat with a girl—or really anyone—like this. No, wait, he remembered sitting with Iris after she broke up with her junior year boyfriend. It didn't bother him so much now, and he didn't feel all that bitter about it either. This moment with Ollie felt a little_ weird _but really welcome._

 _Barry pulled out of his thoughts abruptly as Ollie exclaimed: "Oh my god we are soooo mushy!" She pulled away then, and scooted back a few inches._

 _Barry started to laugh and then Ollie joined in. She was sitting back on her legs near his feet. Her sweater was hanging off her shoulder and her hair was in a messy bun so strands of blonde hair fell onto her shoulders. Her torso was shaking from the laughs, and she really did look beautiful in that moment. He had always recognized that, but something about the previous intimacy helped him acknowledge the attraction._

 _He started to sober and she did too. She then picked up another puff from her hand and prepared to throw it. So it was back to the game. All right!_

 _She settled back on the other end of the bed and they continued tossing the puffs back and forth._

 _After a few tosses, Barry piped up. "Hey, so what's your favorite book?" It was a random question, but would hopefully further alleviate the seriousness of the previous moment._

 _Ollie blinked in surprise, but still caught the cereal. She chewed for a moment before answering. "I don't really have one, but I've been reading those Harry something books to Thea."_

 _"_ Harry Potter _?" Barry responded incredulously._

 _"Uh, yeah, that sounds right. They're alright. Thea's crazy about them, and I like them okay." She threw the next puff and he caught it. "What about you?"_

 _"Hard to pick," he replied honestly as he threw his last piece of cereal. He would always love the one his mother used to read him, but he had also grown up. "Uh,_ Ender's Game _is a good one,_ Lord of the Rings _is okay, but I like the movies better—which is blasphemous if you ask any diehard fans." Ollie threw her last puff at him and he caught it. "Other than those two, I like some of the high school classics."_

 _"Like_ Catcher in the Rye _or_ To Kill a Mockingbird? _" Ollie asked, and he nodded, which made her shrug in response. "They were kind of boring to me, but okay. I get why they're taught in school and all."_

 _Barry hummed while nodding his head. "What was that trans book you had talked about before?" Barry asked as he wiped at the residual cereal on his palm._

 _"Oh yeah, I like that book. It was_ Stone Butch Blues _, and then I read this other really good book called_ Funny Boy. _" She paused for a moment as she wiped her own palms against her jeans. "I mean, they're both sad as hell in parts, but still good."_

 _Barry just nodded. "What about music?"_

 _Ollie shrugged and said, "Whatever's popular, I'm not that picky." That seemed about right; he couldn't picture Ollie liking hardcore rock or opera. "What about you?" she asked._

 _"Same," Barry responded and they sat there for a moment longer._

 _"Hey, should we eat?" Ollie asked as she stood up from the bed._

 _"Uh, sure, what are we eating?" Barry got up and reached for his student ID and keys._

 _"Omelets?" she suggested, and Barry shrugged. It couldn't be too hard to mess that up._

 _…_

 **2011**

Ollie was going to kill this dyed Brit if he didn't keep his hands to himself. His wandering hands were already giving her a panic attack. Reiter glared and watched the Brit cart Ollie off into a rover after shooting the tires in the other vehicles. After that point, Ollie became a tour guide again, though the bastard kept a hand on her thigh while the other hand trained the gun on her. The map was rested on his lap.

"Look jackass, keep touching me like that, and I'll break your fingers," she snarled as she glared at the cleared road ahead of her. She was shaking a little as she pushed back her other memories from the Amazo.

Brit guy gave a little laugh. "Sure thing, love. You threaten the guy with the gun."

Ollie just clenched the steering wheel tighter; however, the bastard finally removed his hand which let her settle a little.

He laughed again. "Look, you're a pretty bird and all, but I won't be doing anything untoward." He then gave her a sidelong look and smirked. "Unless you were agreeing," he added.

"Not a chance in hell," Ollie responded flatly back.

The man whistled and looked away for a moment. "Somebody did a number on you, huh?" he stated.

"Keep talking smartass and you'll learn half of what that _somebody_ taught me," she threatened. He grimaced slightly but kept the gun trained on her.

"Alright, alright, I get you're a badass bitch, no need to get hostile," he exclaimed. Brit then gestured to the map again, "You just get me here, yeah?"

"Nearly there."

The man settled back slightly and smiled, even though he kept the gun trained on her. "John Constantine," he introduced himself. "Not sure if you caught that before." Ollie shook her head.

Constantine made a disappointed noise. "What? I don't get to learn the pretty blonde's name?" he asked.

"Again, not a chance in hell, _mate._ " Ollie's tone was biting and sarcastic.

"A name's a little thing, come on!"

"Olivia," she consented after a moment.

"Olivia…." he pressed while waving the gun in a circular motion. Ollie scoffed.

"Queen."

"Oooh, Olivia Queen." He stretched out her name like he was tasting it. "Aren't you that bi-sexual party-girl who died at sea?"

"Pan," Ollie corrected, "and you best keep saying I'm dead when you leave."

"Oh? I get to leave?" he questioned. Constantine raised an eyebrow and straightened in his seat. "What, are you not really a mercenary?"

Ollie scoffed. "Worse actually, but my loyalties aren't to Reiter."

Constantine laughed a little before he put the gun down. "Well just my luck. I got the friendly island girl."

"I am not—"

"Lighten up love." He gave her a crooked smile.

"Hard to do given the circumstances."

"What circumstances?" he asked as he waved his hand around casually. "You got a handsome, _single_ , man beside you, and you can have your way off this island. Sounds like a dream, right?"

"And I'll never see my son again because I failed my employer. No thanks," Ollie retorted. She gave him a fake smile before she slowed the rover down.

Constantine frowned. "You've got a son and someone's holding him hostage?" he asked in a moment of seriousness. Ollie closed her eyes heavily as the car came to a stop.

She opened her eyes as she turned off the car and reached to open the door. "I stop whatever Reiter's planning, then my boy and I can finally go home," Ollie replied. It felt good to say that out loud for once. She quickly got out of the car with Constantine not far behind her.

He nodded slowly in understanding. "You keep holding onto hope, love. You'll need it to stop Reiter, or I fear what the consequences could be."

"You know what he's planning?" Ollie asked as she led him to the designated spot. Constantine just smirked.

"What do all foolish men like Reiter what, love? _Power."_ He paused as they reached the designated place. He then lifted up the cover as he looked back at her. "This island is a nexus of magic and power. Many ley lines run through it, and I'll wager anything Reiter's after something powerful and evil here."

"Ley lines? Like for real magic?" Ollie asked skeptically. Constantine smiled and nodded before he hopped down the hole.

"See for yourself, love."

What the hell, why not take the leap?

…

 _Ollie settled back with her omelet. It wasn't bad, and she and Barry cooked alright together, which Raisa said was always a good sign. Barry took a bite of his own omelet as they sat at the table in the kitchen._

 _"This is pretty good," he smiled, and Ollie nodded._

 _"We did not do so bad," she agreed. She then held up her glass of almond milk, and Barry raised his own glass. They clinked glasses and took a sip._

 _"So should we do more homework when we get back to the room?" Barry asked as he set the glass down._

 _Ollie scrunched up her face. "Can we not?"_

 _Barry chuckled and nodded his head. "Watch a movie then?" he suggested._

 _"Sure, but I'm not really feeling sci-fi tonight, that okay?"_

 _"Uh yeah," Barry nodded. "I have a few comedies."_

 _"Any slasher or horror movies?" Ollie asked a little eagerly. Barry immediately deflated, and Ollie could hazard a guess why. "Not a fan of the genre?" It came out more like a statement than a question._

 _"Not really," Barry admitted. "I mean, I have a_ Saw _movie, but that's because Iris got it for me as a joke."_

 _Ollie laughed a little. "So you've never taken a girl to a horror movie?" she asked._

 _Barry shook his head, and Ollie hummed. He was probably the most innocent guy she'd ever dated; it was so cute._

 _"Well, why don't I show you how to watch a horror movie with a date, hmm?" she suggested. Barry began to blush and look elsewhere. They both heard a surprised and half amused "Oh damn!" from out in the hallway. Ollie turned around to see a few freshmen dart down the hallway—they had totally been eavesdropping._

 _Barry covered his face with his hands in mortification. Ollie just smiled and quickly finished eating. She then nudged Barry to finish eating before she started washing the dishes. It was a new experience for her but it was kind of nice cleaning up. Barry dried for her and then they went down stairs to return the borrowed cooking ware._

 _Once back in the dorm, Ollie cleared the bed of homework while Barry reluctantly put the scary movie into the DVD player. Once Barry turned on the TV, Ollie turned off the lights and moved back to the bed. She patted the seat next to her, and Barry sighed as he sat down. She rolled her eyes._

 _"Oh my god, it's going to be fine!" she reassured before grabbing the remote and pressing play. She then lowered the volume so it would eventually be easy to ignore._

 _The exposition started, and Barry fidgeted in discomfort. He was too cute! Ollie grabbed his hand and laced her fingers in his. He looked down in surprise, and Ollie just smiled as she continued to watch the exposition. Barry flinched and looked away as one of the men in the room had to—yeah she got why he'd turn away._

 _Ollie quickly grabbed his chin and turned his head to face hers. She leaned in a little closer, "It's okay, Barry. Just focus on me," she leaned in and kissed him. He froze for a moment, perhaps in shock, before he hesitantly returned the kiss as he closed his eyes._

 _A few more moments, the violence stopped and the flash backs began. Ollie sat back while Barry blinked a little confused. "That's how you watch a scary movie with a date, especially if they don't want to watch it," Ollie whispered as she squeezed his hand. She could actually hear him swallow and it just made her smile._

 _"O-okay," he stuttered. Ollie laughed a little at his dazed response. He was too cute. Barry moved a little closer as they continued watching but he quickly looked away again._

 _Ollie leaned in a little closer to him. "Is it okay we're doing this? We said we'd try but if it's—"_

 _"I-It's fine. I was just…surprised." She could practically see his blush in the light from the screen._

 _"So this is what dating's like?" Barry whispered, and Ollie smiled._

 _"Yeah." Ollie shrugged. "You do what you'd normally do with a friend, but you get to make out and have sex—depending on how into it your partner is, of course."_

 _Barry nodded and moved closer to Ollie's side. "I guess it's not as scary as I made it out to be in my head."_

 _"The movie or dating?" Ollie asked back, and Barry laughed._

 _"Definitely dating. This movie is still creeping me_ way _out." Barry flinched as the scene changed to the family watching the victims._

 _Ollie smiled and drew Barry in toward her before she resumed kissing him. If she remembered right, the movie would get worse before it got better. As Ollie deepened the kiss, she started to move Barry onto his back. She straddled his hips and ran a hand down his chest. She could feel his heart beating quickly and could feel him tentatively respond back to her kissing. One of his hands moved to her hip while the other, which had been holding her hand, moved up to grab on to her bicep like he was trying to find something to ground him._

 _It was nice and easy. She hadn't done any innocent making out like this in a long time. It was…pleasant. Barry's hand on her hip tightened briefly, and Ollie pulled away to see what was wrong. Barry was panting, and Ollie smiled down at him. His face was flushed and his eyes half-closed. He was so cute._

 _"How do you breathe?" he asked with labored breaths. Ollie laughed a little kissed his jaw._

 _"You'll figure it out," she whispered back before she began kissing him again._

 _He was less hesitant than before when he kissed her back. His hand on her hip even slid up under her shirt a little. She moved her hand to his hip in return while the arm propping her up moved so she could lace her hands through his hair. She tugged a little, and he made a muffled noise._

 _Ollie was now pretty much flush with him, and it was really nice. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she had_ just _made out with someone. Although her lips were starting to feel sore and chapped, but it was still pleasurable. She pulled back a little and gently bit Barry's lip before she pressed a softer kiss against his lips and fully parted. Oh wow, the movie was almost done, maybe fifteen minutes left._

 _Barry just stayed laying down for a while and stared up at the ceiling. Ollie let him gather himself and calm down. She reached for her purse and fished around for her chapstick. It took almost the rest of the movie for Barry to finally gather himself and sit back up. He still fidgeted a little and was blushing. Ollie handed him her chapstick and he took it without question._

 _"That was different," Barry commented after a moment, and Ollie chuckled._

 _"Making out horizontally is different," Ollie conceded. She recalled they had made out vertically at the frat party._

 _Barry vaguely nodded. "Well yeah, but I didn't feel…" he trailed off and looked down at the bed. "I don't feel…bad."_

 _Ollie furrowed her brow before understanding hit her. She didn't feel bad or guilty either. It had just been nice and kind of freeing. Even now that Ollie was remembering Laurel, well, she wasn't so bothered that she might never get to make out with her._

 _"Do you know what I mean?" Barry asked._

 _Ollie nodded. "I do."_

 _It was kind of terrifying yet it lifted this unnamed burden on her. The credits were rolling but neither of them moved to change the movie or turn the lights on. They were both just thinking to themselves while they sat close together. When the title screen appeared, Ollie finally got up and turned the lights on. They both grimaced, but Barry didn't complain._

 _"Comedy movie now?" Barry suggested, and Ollie shrugged. She started to take off her pants and change into her sleep shirt. She then slipped off her bra like a shy girl in the locker room. Barry grabbed his night stuff and moved out to the bathroom to change. She left too but went up to the girl's floor and brushed her teeth before going back to Barry's room. She got a few stares, but screw them—her shirt was long enough to cover everything and some sleep shorts if she had brought any. Barry was back in the room when she returned. They settled back on the bed and watched the comedy Barry had put in. Before long, they were sleeping._

 _…_

Barry met up with Iris at Jitters. He sighed as he sat down. Iris quickly joined him. "What's with the sigh Bar?" she asked.

"Sian and I broke up, but that's really not a surprise."

"You two were together for almost four months, that's a new record," she commented, and Barry gave her a deadpan look.

"Out of the two people I've seriously dated, yes that's a record." He sank back in his chair and sighed again. "What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing's wrong with you, Barry," Iris tried to comfort.

He just shook his head. Something was wrong with him. Ollie broke up with him for a reason, and it wasn't because he was hung up on Iris because at the time he _wasn't._ But for the other girls he's tried to date…?

If he wasn't hung up with Iris, he was hung up on Ollie, and the girls he tried to date could tell. Maybe Barry brought Iris and Ollie up too much, or maybe it was because he didn't know how to pace things so he went slow—after all, he and Ollie had taken things pretty fast and that was probably not normal. Barry sighed again. Iris nudged him in the arm.

"Come on, things will turn around. You just have to stay positive, okay?" She gave him that smile he just kept falling for, and then she was off to wipe down a table. Well, he ought to get a coffee and do some homework before he and Iris went to surprise Joe at work.

…

 _Barry and Ollie were holding hands as they returned from the soup kitchen. "Hey, I'm still kind of hungry," Barry commented as he swung Ollie's hand. They might have literally started dating yesterday, but it all felt so easy and natural—even hand-holding._

 _"Yeah?" she asked, and he nodded. Ollie hummed in confirmation._

 _"Do you think we can have more crêpes?"_

 _"Pancakes!" Ollie corrected with a glare._

 _"They're crêpes Ollie."_

 _"_ No _, they're_ Russian _pancakes."_

 _Barry hummed. "Crêpes," he repeated, and Ollie shook her head._

 _"We won't if you keep calling them that. They're pancakes—Raisa said so." Ollie sounded almost petulant._

 _"Yeah, whatever," he responded almost flippantly. Ollie glared at him for a moment before they both began laughing._

 _"Fine, we'll make some more—we have enough batter left."_

 _"And enough condensed milk," Barry added with a smile. "Who would have thought to put that on pancakes?"_

 _"Russians?" Ollie replied, and they both began laughing again._

 _By the time they got back, Barry had to sign Ollie in and he signed out a skillet and spatula again. They then went straight to the common area kitchen and began making their second dinner. Barry offered to cook them this time, and Ollie offered to spread the milk on them before rolling them up. They stood side by side, so Barry got out his iPod and handed Ollie one ear bud._

 _"Oh my god, we're gonna be that obnoxiously cute couple aren't we?" she asked ironically, and Barry laughed as he nodded. "Yes! Let's do it!" Ollie cheered as she accepted the earbud._

 _While they waited the minute for the "pancakes" to cook, they danced to the music on the iPod, well sort of. It was mostly just side stepping together, and Ollie getting him to move his shoulders with the music._

 _"It's called syncopation Barry," Ollie chided at one point._

 _"I'm trying Ollie, I swear!" Ollie just shook her head and mumbled "excuses." Unfortunately he needed to flip the crêpe before it burned, so he couldn't give her his rebuttal. Thirty or so seconds later, he was putting the crêpe onto Ollie's plate. She quickly slathered it with condensed milk before rolling it up. She hissed a little at the heat._

 _There was enough batter for maybe two more crêpes. During that time, he got a few more "dance lessons" from Ollie—which was really her just bossing him around and showing him how he was doing it wrong. They were then ready for their second dinner. However, in their defense, they had gotten up late, and so this was really only their third meal of the day and they had had "dinner" three hours ago._

 _They sat down at the table in the common area kitchen and ate after removing the ear buds. "You are hopelessly uncoordinated, Barry Allen," Ollie stated, and Barry nodded his head._

 _"Yeah, I know." He was_ not _ashamed of his inability to dance. He happily grabbed one of the rolled up crêpes and took a bite. Ollie rolled her eyes and also took one of the crêpes. As they ate, they talked about random things, like what were good vacation spots. Ollie described the merits of southern France, Rome, the Bahamas, and Paris. Ollie was now relating a ski trip she had in Aspen with Tommy and Laurel where she and Tommy decided they needed to go into business together. She also admitted to getting_ really _high on that trip._

 _"You've been high?" Barry asked surprised._

 _"Yeah? You've never been high?" Ollie widened her eyes suddenly. "Right cop dad," she stated as if realizing her previous error._

 _She wasn't wrong though. Joe was the reason he had never dared to get high. At the same time, Barry wasn't sure how he felt about doing drugs._

 _Perhaps noticing his look or contemplation, Ollie said, "You haven't missed much. It can be scary and fun depending." Ollie shrugged as she finished off the last crêpe. "I did acid once, and I will_ never _do it again." She actually shuddered. "I had such a bad trip…"_

 _Ollie then stood and picked up the plates. They worked on the dishes together, though Barry couldn't drop the topic. "Do you still get high?"_

 _"Not lately. I think I smoked a blunt like a month ago." She shrugged nonchalantly, and Barry's shoulders eased slightly. Ollie frowned as she noticed that. "Barry, you don't need to worry. It's just bored rich kid stuff. I haven't done anything serious in years and I don't plan to."_

 _"I'm not worried," he replied, but Ollie gave him a skeptical look._

 _"Uh, yeah you were Barry, and it's kinda cute." Why did she have to keep calling him that?_

 _"Okay, whatever." He finished drying the pan and said, "Let's get these back to the desk."_

 _Ollie rolled her eyes and followed him, though she also caught his embarrassment, and gave him a knowing smile. He just picked up his speed._

 _"Hey Barry, do you have cards?" Ollie asked randomly, and Barry slowed his decent down the stairwell._

 _"Uh? Yeah?"_

 _"Cool, let's play some card games."_

 _Barry shrugged as they exited the stairwell. He returned the supplies to the front desk before they made their way back up the stairs._

 _"What game do you wanna play?" Barry asked as they climbed the stairs._

 _"I dunno, I just wanted to play something. Maybe poker? Do you know how to play poker?" she looped an arm in his._

 _"Uh, not really," Barry admitted, and Ollie hummed._

 _"What about Speed? That was popular at my elementary school."_

 _"Yeah, I remember that game from fourth grade." Iris always kicked his butt at it; sometimes he was just too slow._

 _"Cool, we'll start with that one, then I'll teach you poker—oh! What about gin rummy?"_

 _"Never played it," Barry admitted as he held the stairwell door open for Ollie. She looked excited as she moved down the hallway toward his room._

 _"You've never played gin! Oh, I am so teaching you it." She spun around in the hallway and gestured to herself as she said, "_ I _am the gin Queen in my family" Barry immediately began to laugh, and Ollie joined him. "I did not mean it that way," she gasped out between laughs. Barry just shook his head as he opened the door._

 _Once they settled inside, Barry found his deck of cards and they began playing the games while he put some music on in the background. They talked about random things except for when they got too competitive. Who would have thought Olivia Queen was so competitive. Soon their conversations ended altogether and they just focused on beating each other at the different games. It was kind of fun in a way._

 _"Ha! I win!" Ollie cheered as she set her cards down. Barry groaned and fell back against the bed._

 _"Damn, you are the gin queen!" Barry exclaimed. He had only won_ one _gin rummy game, and Ollie said that it was beginner's luck. He lost the next nine just so she could prove her point (although half of them were close). Barry opened his eyes when he felt hair tickling the side of his face. Ollie was leaning over him and smiling broadly; her blonde hair fell to one side in a curtain that brushed against his cheek._

 _"What was that?" she asked in a teasing tone. Barry rolled his eyes._

 _"You're the gin queen," he repeated, and her smile actually grew. Then she as kissing him. Her hands went into his hair and she tugged lightly—damn that felt good._

 _"Don't forget that Barry," she murmured as she pulled away slightly so their breath mingled._

 _"I won't," he murmured against her lips before initiating the kiss. She moved to straddle his hips. Her weight and heat felt…really nice. He set his hands on her hips and deepened the kiss. Ollie shifted on top of him as they continued kissing, and Barry groaned before involuntarily bucking up. He blushed brightly. He shouldn't have done that, but damn that friction…_

 _Barry flinched when he felt Ollie's hand on his stomach between their bodies. She must have slipped her hand under his shirt and now splayed her fingers across his stomach. Then she was kissing his jaw and…wow…that felt so nice. Barry bit his lip as he groaned at the sensations. Then Ollie's hand was at his belt and her lips were behind his ear._

 _"Is this too much? Should I stop?"_

 _"N-no…" Barry's eyes rolled back when she reached into his pants after unbuckling his belt. He'd never been touched by anyone else, and damn…it felt so different in a good way._

 _"You'll tell me if I need to stop?" she asked before she moved her lips down the side of his neck._

 _Barry swallowed before gasping, "Y-yeah." Damn. Her hand, her lips against his skin—he'd denied himself these sorts of relationships for so long and it felt so fucking good. Fuck…_

 _Barry didn't know how Ollie went from his neck to kissing around his navel but—then coherent thought left him. Suddenly, Ollie was pulling away, and Barry was so confused—did he really just make a whining noise?! Oh god that was so embarrassing. Barry threw an arm over his face._

 _"Let me know if this is too much," Ollie murmured before Barry jumped slightly. Oh god, she was putting a condom on him. Did she want to—Barry quickly fisted the sheets beside him. He couldn't think, he could only feel._

 _After his release, Barry closed his eyes. He heard and felt Ollie get up and move. He glanced to the side and saw her move toward the trashcan to dispose of the condom. He dazedly watched as Ollie moved from the trashcan to his desk. She grabbed a cup of water Barry had left out this morning and began drinking while making a few faces. "Regular condoms taste like shit," she commented, which made Barry blush more than he already was._

 _"I can't believe you just did that…" Barry murmured before he realized he was still hanging out of his pants. Did it ever get less awkward afterwards? God he felt so embarrassed._

 _"Barry…" Ollie's serious tone broke him from his thoughts. He looked over at her with his brow furrowed and waited for what she had to say. "I told you tell me if I should stop." She was worried about that?_

 _"I did_ not _want you to stop," Barry assured her with a laugh as he corrected himself._

 _"You're sure?" Ollie began again with a frown still on her face._

 _"I'm sure," he repeated before he rubbed the back of his head. "Though…" Barry blushed and wondered if he should do something for Ollie. At the same time, it all felt like it_ should _be too fast, but what they were doing didn't feel like it was too fast._

 _"Though what?" Ollie asked as she finished the water._

 _Barry scratched the side of his face while he blushed a little more and moved toward Ollie. "I dunno know…you did that and…" Ollie raised an eyebrow in confusion before her expression cleared and she began to laugh._

 _"Oh Barry, you are too cute and sweet. It's okay. I don't want to rush you into anything. I know this is all…_ new _, so…" She rubbed his arm slightly before squeezing it. "Don't worry, okay?"_

 _Barry bit his lip but nodded. He then looked back at the bed and saw the cards scattered over the floor and some of them bent all to hell. "I'm gonna need a new deck of cards," he muttered, and Ollie began to laugh._

 _She kissed the side of his neck before hugging him from behind. "I can reimburse you," she teased. Barry blushed a little more, but couldn't keep from smiling._

 _"We should go to bed. I have class in the morning," Barry commented. Ollie hummed and nodded before letting him go to clean up the cards._

 _As they settled in for the night, Barry thought back to the sudden change in their relationship. He had thought it would be more awkward or that his feelings for Iris would stop him, but Joe was right. When Barry was with Ollie, he didn't think about Iris and he didn't feel guilty being with Ollie either. It was nice kissing her and…well, what she had just done was…_ really _nice. Ollie was cool, and fun to be with. He felt so at ease with her and she accepted him for the nerd that he was. Maybe this relationship wouldn't be so bad?_

* * *

 **TBC**


End file.
